Warnings: This is a fanfiction written in the Housepets Universe, and therefore will obviously contain characters, subjects, themes, and even a few scenes directly from that universe. Naturally I don't own any of it, and I've written this purely for my own amusement.

/ / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / /Prologue – My Name, Is Grim

Darkness...

Never-ending darkness that surrounded him from all sides, that trapped, contained, protected and sustained him all at the same time. Darkness that was thicker than the strongest blood, yet also lighter than the gentlest breeze.

He didn't know why he was here in the darkness, constantly floating amidst it. All he knew was that it was his choice to be here, that for a reason he didn't understand he'd chosen to remain within the never-ending darkness. He'd chosen to be deprived of sight, feeling, and left alone in the darkness with silence and his thoughts.

Yet his thoughts were boring and pointless, considering the darkness around him. Constantly searching his seemingly empty mind for answers, answers to why he'd agreed to remain within the darkness, alone.

Or, at least he believed he was alone. He couldn't see anyone of course, and he couldn't feel anything, not even his own body. The darkness contained only silence and his thoughts, but that didn't stop the odd voice that echoed inside him.

He didn't know where the voice came from, only that it echoed randomly for apparently no reason whatsoever. It always spoke the same things, never changing, always repeating the same things in random orders that he didn't understand.

'I've sealed the gate...'

Those were the words he heard the most often, full of sorrow and regret. He didn't understand what the voice spoke about, but it was impossible not to feel the sorrow and regret in the voice, sorrow for what he'd done, and regret for having to do so.

'My power is weakening, this body is not long for the world...'

This sentence was one of the rarest, something he only heard a few times. He didn't understand this sentence either, but it was spoken by the same voice, a raspy echoing voice. The voice always seemed pained when it spoke this sentence, but it also seemed pleased at the same time.

'I cannot stop what is to come...'

These words were the very first he'd ever heard spoken, and that had been the one time he'd heard them. He had never since heard them spoken, and hadn't truly been paying attention the first time it happened.

'Prolong, prolong the opening, that I can do...'

This was the only thing he truly understood, it was spoken by the same voice, and always accompanied by the same image. A lone figure shrouded in shadows standing in front of a magnificent golden gate, starring up at what appeared to be a glowing orb of flames.

He understood this sentence more than any other, for how could he not understand something he remembered so vividly. He didn't know if the image was from his memories, if he'd witnessed or experienced it, but he knew it was important.

Still nothing really mattered well he was locked away inside of it, locked away for who knew how many years, how many centuries. He'd long since lost track of how long he'd been contained, how long he'd only had the darkness and the voice to keep him company.

It seemed like forever, but in truth he had no idea.

'The gate must not be opened, for it will bring about the beginning of the end!'

In the darkness he found himself shocked beyond belief, that voice...it wasn't the same. The voice that had just echoed through his mind, it was not the one who had spoken every other word he'd ever heard inside the darkness.

CLICK

Inside the darkness he blinked, that sound, he was sure that hadn't just been inside his mind. But that didn't make any sense, he'd never heard anything within the darkness before...he must have just imagined it.

…

!BOOM!

Suddenly everything changed, the sound of a loud explosion echoed not only through his mind, but clearly throughout the darkness that surrounded him. Just as the click had been heard by his ears and not his mind, the explosion had obviously somehow affected the darkness as well.

He didn't understand, why was he suddenly hearing things? Turning he looked around him inside the darkness, struggling to understand what was happening to the never-ending emptiness that was his home.

...Wait...

Eyes wide he looked down at himself, his eyes that had seen nothing but darkness for years, taking in a vague shadowy form. For a moment he could do nothing but stare in shock, he didn't understand what was happening, but he knew for a fact that something had changed.

He could see himself! He could feel his body!

“I”

His eyes widened and he looked around him in shock, his mind struggling to keep up with the changes and events happening to him. One minute he'd been floating in the darkness, but now he could see himself, feel the ground beneath him, and hear what sounded like giant footsteps.

“AM”

He felt a massive displacement of air, and heard the sound of feathers moving through the air. He didn't know what to do, all he could remember was the darkness, the silence, the emptiness. Now though everything was changing, and all he could do was stay unmoving with wide eyes.

“FREE”

!VOMV!BOOM!CLISH!FOOSH!

The ground under him began to shake and change, pieces of it being ripped into the air, and he found himself dropping down to a knee. All around him the blackness began to crack, faint spider-like lines appearing all around him.

White began to seep into the darkness, and within seconds he could see everything around him. The darkness that had been his home, appeared to be some sort of tree. He'd been trapped inside of a tree, but now it was breaking away around him.

CRACK

Eyes wide he starred in shock as the tree exploded around him, moonlight pouring down from the moon above him, illuminating him. Moonlight flickered and for the first time in who knew how long, he was able to see himself, and everything around him.

A beautiful forest surrounded him on all sides, tall trees with brilliant leaves, wind that flowed through them, a lush forest that he could tell was full of life. Above him was the hanging moon, surrounded by bright flickering stars.

The sound of running water caught his attention, and he turned to stare into the water. His reflection stared back at him, and for a moment he could do nothing but stare in shock. After so many years, it was odd to see himself, hell, everything was pretty odd at the moment.

He was a black wolf, thick feral black fur covered his entire body, and his tail was bushy and hanging unmoving behind him. His eyes seemed to glow an eerie electric green, and flickered with a hidden emotion he couldn't place.

He also couldn't help but notice the multiple scars that covered his body, the most noticeable one cutting through his right eye. His body appeared to be otherwise fine, he stood at five feet nine inches and was built somewhat athletically, with a thin layer of easily noticeable muscle.

He was wearing a long black trenchcloak, that reached all the way down to the ground, and a pitch black collar with a silver skull hanging from it. Reaching up he turned the skull over, and was disappointed to find the information missing.

“What the heck is going on?” he whispered questioningly.

Immediately after hearing his own voice he felt his eyes go wide, his voice, it almost perfectly matched the voice that had spoken to him for so long in the darkness. His voice was only slightly more smooth, with less of a raspy quality.

“What the hell,” he growled, “Nothing makes any sense.”

/ / /

“You don't need to do this,”

Turning he looked over at the beautiful green dragon, her eyes glowing powerfully, yet filled with an incredible amount of worry. Smiling softly he waved his paw, and a perfectly black rose appeared hovering in front of the dragon's eyes.

“I need to do this, I'm the only one who can.”

Smiling reassuringly he turned away from the dragon, his footsteps echoing loudly as he walked away across the marble white floor. Behind him he heard a soft crying begin, and he clenched his fist and continued to walk forward.

No matter how much he wished it could be different, he was the only one strong enough. The only one among them that had the strength, the power to protect...everything.

“Goodbye...” he whispered gently as he walked past a large open gate of gold.

“No...not goodbye,” whispered the Dragon, “See you soon...Grim.”

/ / /

Eyes snapping open he stared at his reflection in the water, his worried confused expression replaced by one of faint understanding. He didn't know everything that had happened, but he was obviously the one who'd spoken inside the darkness, he'd locked himself away to protect.

All his fear and worry faded away, and he knew that he had been released. Whatever he'd been sealed away to stop, had obviously broken free, and he'd been released at the same time. He didn't know what the future would bring, or what he was going to do, but he knew two things for sure.

He was a protector, and he had a name...

Grim.

/ / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / /Chapter 1 – I'm...Different

It had been a half-hour since Grim found himself released from the darkness, he'd immediately started wandering his surroundings to see if he could find anything. He'd been hoping to find a clue to exactly why he'd sealed himself away, who that odd dragon had been, and who had been the cause of his release.

He hadn't found anything though, instead he'd ended up becoming lost in the middle of a seemingly massive forest. Even with his heightened wolf hearing, he could only make out the sounds of un-intelligent forest animals.

At the moment he was following his nose, which had picked up the faint scent of raw meat. He hopped that it was coming from the dinner of a Feral in the forest, and not the dead meal of a dangerous un-intelligent predator.

“ALL HAIL THE OPENER!”

Grim's ears twitched, and he immediately turned in the direction the loud group shout had come from. He made his way through a large group of trees, over another small stream, and past a large bush wall before finding himself standing at the edge of a clearing.

His eyes immediately caught sight of a small campfire, which was surround by Ferals on all sides, all of them looking towards a figure sitting in a large chair made of interconnecting wood. He walked a little closer, and was able to make out exactly who was sitting in the chair and seemingly being worshiped.

A young looking rabbit was sitting in the chair, his white fur illuminated by the firelight. It only took Grim seeing the young rabbit's eyes to know that this rabbit wasn't Feral, the fear and worry in the rabbit's yellowish-green eyes was unmistakable.

Glancing at his surroundings he wondered just what was going on, as far as he knew Ferals didn't allow Pets to stay with them, and they normally kept apart. Maybe his knowledge had changed since he was locked away, he didn't even have most of it after-all.

Grim didn't know why his memories were locked away, or why he barely knew anything. All he knew was that the longer he walked around awake, the more knowledge he seemed to remember. So far it had been pretty basic things, like social statuses, the state of the planet he remembered, how humans and pets lived together, oh, and he also apparently knew Martial Arts.

Deciding that he might as well see if he could do anything, Grim made his way directly towards the campfire. His footsteps echoed loudly against the grass, his time in the darkness, plus his missing knowledge having removed most of his natural wolf-like instincts.

Heads turned towards him, but most of them turned away the second they saw his collar. As he got closer to the camp though, and made his way around the group of Ferals towards the rabbit sitting in the chair. He found three large Ferals standing in his way, one bear, and two wolves who were all snarling.

Grim stared into the bear's blue eyes and wondered what he should do, he found himself contemplating his options. He could easily make his way around the bear, he was obviously faster than the bulky predator, but the two wolves would easily stop him. He could try and reason his way through, but he had no idea what to say.

Finally Grim decided on an option, closing his eyes he breathed in and focused on the faint knowledge of martial arts he'd received. Immediately his entire stance and demeanor shifted, changing from relaxed and unconcerned, to cold and dangerous.

Everyone in the camp noticed the change, and a few of them grew worried when they noticed how perfect the black wolves stance appeared to be. Their worry only increased though when Grim's eyes opened, the electric green having turned icy.

“Step aside,” intoned Grim his voice cold.

The bear opened his mouth to speak, only to stop when he locked eyes with Grim. He suddenly found the air around him having become heavy and suffocating, and aura of deathly malevolence having appeared out of nowhere around the black wolf.

The two wolves had no idea what to think, one second the black wolf had appeared to be easy prey, and than his entire aura had shifted. The friendly, yet lone-wolf like feel had disappeared, and been replaced by the emotionless rage of an Alpha.

“Let him through,” snapped one of the wolves, the other rapidly nodding in agreement.

The bear immediately did so, stepping aside the two wolves flowing seamlessly behind him. Grim watched them return to the ground with the mob around the campfire, and he turned back towards the rabbit.

He found himself starring into two terrified eyes, and he quickly forced himself to relax and return to normal. He noticed how everyone around him instantly relaxed, and the rabbit's face seemed to regain color, and found himself blinking. Was his 'presence' truly so terrifying, his knowledge of martial arts hadn't said anything about it effecting someone so badly.

Deciding to worry about it later, he walked forward until he was directly in front of the rabbit, who titled his head to look up at him. Grim smiled to try and make himself look even less threatening, but the sight of his sharp teeth seemed to put the rabbit even more on edge.

“Sorry if I scared you,” said Grim softly, “I just woke up in the forest, and I have no idea where I am, or how I got here.”

“Oh,” said the rabbit blinking.

Grim stared at the rabbit's face, and found himself wondering if all rabbits looked so cute. He found himself drawn in by the rabbit's eyes, and it took him a moment to regain awareness of the situation around him.

Realizing the rabbit appeared to be waiting for him to say something, he quickly thought about what to say. He didn't want to freak the rabbit out by talking about the darkness, but he didn't want to lie unless absolutely necessary.

“I was wondering if you could point me to a nearby town or something,” asked Grim carefully, “I seemed to be missing some memory, and want to go visit a Vet for a checkup.”

“No problem,” said the rabbit nodding, “I'm Zach, and I live in the town right beside the forest.”

“Convenient,” chuckled Grim, “I'm Grim...and I have no idea where I live.”

Zach blinked a few times shocked, he couldn't image not remembering something so simple like where he lived. Speaking of that, Mr. Arbelt was probably worried about him for having disappeared so suddenly.

Marvin and Tiger didn't seem to really care if he disappeared, but Mr. Arbelt had been really kind and nice to him. He couldn't believe he'd been considering leaving and becoming Feral, he liked being a Pet, but things had just been so difficult lately.

“Sometimes the things right in front of us, are the easiest to miss,” said Grim softly.

Zach's head snapped up, and he stared at Grim for a few seconds. It was almost like Grim had known exactly what he was thinking, but something like that was impossible...wasn't it? Yet, what reason could Grim have had to say something like that otherwise.

“Are you psychic like Tarot?” questioned Zach

Grim blinked.

“Um,” he paused and blinked a few more times, “I don't think I am...but if I am, I likely wouldn't remember.”

Zach stared at Grim in complete dumbfounded shock, and than started to laugh. He should have known Grim would say that, how was he supposed to know something like that when he was having Amnesia-like problems.

“Come on,” said Zach pushing himself to his feet, “Let's get you to the Vet, and hopefully fix some of the holes in your memory.”

Zach walked away from his chair, Grim slowly following behind him, his longer legs easily allowing him to keep up with the rabbit. But they both suddenly found their path blocked, the mob of Ferals that had been sitting down were all suddenly standing in front of them.

“Don't leave!”

“Stay Opener!”

“Blessed be the Opener of Ways!”

“Don't Abandon us Opener of Ways!”

Grim watched as Zach seemed to fold in on himself, and he could tell the young rabbit was beginning to panic. Before he even knew what he was doing he'd stepped forward, putting himself between the mob of Ferals and Zach.

He found himself slightly surprised as all the Ferals stepped backwards, their faces, muzzles and beaks flickering with faint fear as they stared at him. Once again he found himself wondering how powerful his 'presence' was, but he knew this wasn't the time to contemplate it.

“Zach and I are leaving,” he said trying to keep his voice cold, “Move aside.”

The mob of Ferals immediately parted like the red sea, and Grim had to bite his muzzle to stop himself from laughing out loud. Instead he struggled to keep and annoyed, cold look on his muzzle as he gently pulled Zach to his side and began walking. When they reached the edge of the mob, he heard a loud voice shout out.

“There's only one of him! Don't let him take the Opener of Ways!”

Grim swore mentally as he spun around, pulling Zach with him so he was behind him. Grim found himself faced with a mob of Ferals, all of whom appeared ready to attack him at any moment. He noticed faint glints within the mob, signaling the extending of claws and talons as the Ferals prepared to charge.

“Zach, run to the trees,” said Grim softly, “I'll be right behind you.”

Zach hesitated and opened his mouth, only for it to snap closed as Grim's presence flared to life. It was right then that he knew Grim would easily be able to handle the Ferals, seeing Grim's claws extend only served to strengthen that belief.

“I'll wait for you,” said Zach resolutely before he turned and began running.

Grim glanced behind him at Zach's fleeing form, and than turned to face the Ferals who had started rushing towards him. Holding his paws open, and making sure his claws were ready, he shifted his body lowering as he entered a stance he couldn't remember ever using, yet felt like something he'd been doing all his life.

The Ferals reached him, lashing out with claws, hooves, talons, and various other limbs. He struggled not to let his eyes widen or his presence vanish as he moved, his body flowing around attacking limbs and bodies like water. His arms and paws slapping away any attacker's limbs as they closed in, and his entire body moving as if it had done this countless times.

Within seconds Grim was in the middle of the mob of Ferals, not a single scratch on his body, and the Ferals had stopped attacking. All of them were starring at him in shocked awe, and he found it difficult to not let his muzzle shift with the same emotions.

He had no idea how he'd done that, but he knew that he could easily do it again. It appeared that the scars that covered his body weren't just decoration, he'd obviously fought in his past, and learned a great deal in order to not gain anymore scars.

“Leave Zach alone,” growled Grim, “Now go back to your campfire.”

Grim lifted his paw and pointed a claw at the campfire, the Ferals around him immediately disappeared to whence they'd come. Breathing out deeply he retracted his claws, and let his presence vanish to wherever he was calling it from. As he did so it happened, another flash of knowledge ripped through his mind.

Presence ('Fighter's Resolve''Killing Intent''Spiritual Pressure')

The physical and mental manifestation of a Warrior's Resolve to fight, often represented by an invisible pressure or horrible feelings. It is possible for a presence to become visible, or even to take shape by those good at sensing them.

The burst of knowledge faded away, and Grim blinked a few times as he regained awareness. Looking around him he noticed a few Ferals looking at him, and he leveled a glare at them well growling. They immediately turned away, and Grim let out a soft sigh of relief.

Turning he headed towards out of the clearing, immediately catching sight of Zach hidden behind one of the trees right at the edge. He made his way towards the young rabbit, who hearing footsteps spun around to see who was approaching. A wide smile spread across Zach's face, and he heard the rabbit let out a sigh of relief.

“You aren't hurt,” said Zach relieved.

“It'll take more than a few Ferals to hurt me,” said Grim smiling before he frowned, “Though I have no idea why I would need to know how to fight like that...”

Zach's smile faded away as well, he'd almost forgotten about Grim's memories. It wasn't common for a Pet to loose there memories, but it was often considered a very serious insure. What if a Pet forgot something like their Owner needing medicine, or something equally important.

“Let's get to town and get you to the Vet then,” said Zach trying to keep cheerful.

Grim nodded, and he followed Zach as they headed out of the forest.

/ / / / /District Court

Joel sighed softly as he walked down the hallway, one of the Court Employes walking ahead of him, and two guards trailing behind him. He couldn't believe his life had taken this turn, this had been the last thing he wanted when joining PETA.

He'd really thought that PETA was a respectable company, truly trying to free Pets from Human ownership. That was all he wanted, to let Pets know that they didn't have to be treated like lesser beings, that they could remain in the wild, be Feral without anyone judging them.

He didn't want to shove his beliefs down someones throat, but that had been what PETA had done. He'd thought that all Pets wanted to be free, but he was ashamed to admit that he'd never even asked a Pet what they wanted.

His own Pets had always wanted to be free, and that had only enforced his belief that it was common among Pets, and they were just to scared to speak it. But that dog, the one they had kidnapped and tried to set free. He'd been happy with his life, and they'd tried to ruin it because they believed that they knew better than anyone else.

He supposed he deserved to be here, to be sentenced for a few months in prison. Maybe once it was over he'd settle down somewhere without Pets, in one of the few human only locations left in the world. It was obvious Pets liked their status, and he didn't want to try and influence anything anymore.

Suddenly they stopped, and a guard opened a nearby door. Joel didn't even wait to be told, he walked past the guard and turned into the room. Holding up his hands he let the guard unlock his cuffs, and than looked towards the Court Employe.

“Your Lawyer will be arriving shortly with a change of clothes for you,” said the Employe before closing the door.

Joel sighed and lowered his head, he wish that this wouldn't be put off any longer. All he wanted was to get his jail-time over with, and than put all of this behind him. Let the anima...Pets do whatever they wanted, and he would leave them alone, and they would leave him alone.

“Good Morning, Joel.”

Joel blinked and wondered who was in the room, his Lawyer wasn't supposed to have arrived yet. Turning around he felt his eyes go wide, and his head lifted up as he stared into the air above him in complete silence.

For a few moments he couldn't even think properly, and than he began to take in the situation. Resting on the ground in the room with him was a massive Blue Gryphon, an animal that was a myth and couldn't possibly be here.

A moment later he said the only thing he could think of, “You're not my Lawyer.”

The Gryphon chuckled and spoke, “Oh come ON, is that your best line?” the Gryphon's voice echoed the humor in it impossible to miss, “You're supposed to say something like, 'So we'll be switching to an insanity plea?'”

Joel stared up at the Gryphon, he wasn't sure what to say or do. He hadn't decided if this was a figment of his imagination or not, he was honestly hoping it was, but his luck hadn't been doing that good for the last few months.

“I've been watching you Joel,” spoke the Gryphon, “I'm disappointed to say you've been a very naughty boy,” the Gryphon snapped his fingers and Joel felt an odd shift in equilibrium before shrugging it off as the Gryphon continued, “You blame animals for your problems, and than take out your hurt feelings on them, continuing to do so, despite all the pain it's caused you in return.”

Joel winced slightly, and began to think this Gryphon really was an illusion. It spoke about things he'd never admitted to anyone, and it wasn't like an animal could read his mind or anything, so that meant it had to be a figment of his mind.

“The cycle must stop,” said the Gryphon, “A six month stint in jail won't help you come to terms with your feelings, or your broken conscience.”

Joel sneered, “Okay Mister Figment, I see where this is going,” he laughed coldly, “You're going to 'Teach me a Lesson' about how I'm a mean ol'sourpuss and the world is built on the backs of rainbows and unicorns.”

Joel laughed coldly again, and glared up at the Gryphon.

“So by spending time as the very thing I'm biased against, I'll come to a greater understanding of peace, love and solar power or some other junk,” Joel didn't stop as he let out his aggression using heavy sarcasm, “Then, as though it had taken only one night, I wake up teary-eyed and newly compassionate, without ever truly knowing if what I experienced was real or a dream!”

Joel crossed his arms and snapped, “So let's get this hallucination over with!” he stared up at the Gryphon and growled, “Are you going to change me into a dog or what?”

The Gryphon chuckled and looked at him pointedly, “On the ball today, aren't we?”

Joel looked down at himself, his eyes immediately went wide. He was shorter than before, his hands had turned into paws, he had a muzzle now, he could even feel himself panting softly, he had definitely been turned into a dog.

How was this possible, nothing like this should happen in a hallucination. Had he somehow passed out and started dreaming without noticing, or had he already died and gone to hell? None of this made sense, so it couldn't be happening.

Despite all this Joel couldn't help but notice one thing, “AAAH! I'M NAKED!”

/ / / / /Vet's Office

Grim sat calmly on the table in the middle of the Vet's office, his long legs hanging off the edge and his sharp eyes scanning the room. He had no memories of vising a Vet before, but he must have some point in his lifetime, especially if he was a Pet.

Speaking of that, Grim reached down and grabbed his Skull tag once again. He couldn't help but wonder why it had no information on it, if he was a Pet, and he must have been since he was wearing a collar, than his owner should have written information on the tag.

Turning it over Grim found himself blinking, it wasn't empty anymore...

Pet-Name: GrimNickname:- - - - -

Owner: Undecipherable WritingAddress:Blacked Out

Grim stared at the information for a few minutes, it appeared he didn't have a nickname, which wasn't odd considering his short name. He apparently had an owner, but the writing was too faded and scratched for him to make out. It was the same with the address, only it had apparently been purposely blacked out where the other had faded with time.

Grim looked up as the door opened, and his eyes tracked a older woman as she walked into the room. She was wearing a plain grey shirt, and a long black blouse, followed by the fairly common white doctor's coat.

“Good Morning,” said the woman brightly as she picked up Grim's chart, “Hmm,” she hummed as she flipped through it, “According to this you have pretty major memory loss, and the only information you were able to provide was your name.”

The woman walked over to Grim, and he sat patiently as she began to work over him with her hands. Testing to see he had enough meat on his bones, making sure none of his bones were broken, checking his ears and eyes, making sure his claws extended and retracted properly, and a whole bunch of other basic things.

“From what I can see you're perfectly healthy,” said the Doctor, “Healthier than any wolf I've ever seen, it's quite something.”

“I can only speculate,” warned the Doctor, “But that sounds like a possibility, come back in a week if you haven't regained any memories, and we'll run a few tests.”

Grim nodded and hoped off the table, smiling at the Doctor he turned and headed out of the examination room, leaving her behind to write some things down on his chart. He quickly made his way to the lobby, where he found Zach waiting for him patiently.

As he made his way over to Zach, he suddenly felt a chill go up his spine. Spinning around he looked towards the door, watching with sharp eyes as it opened and a Pet and his Owner walked in. His eyes took to the two in, something about them causing his mind to scream out at him.

The Owner appeared to be an older gentleman, and was wearing a buttoned coat, hat, and holding a cane that he barely appeared to be leaning on. Grim didn't know what it was, but everything about this old man was causing him to feel danger. He knew that despite appearances, this old man wasn't someone to be messed with.

His eyes took in the Pet next, and once again his senses screamed out. It wasn't danger they sensed though, this time his senses told him something wasn't right. The light brown and white Welsh Corgi wasn't what he appeared to be, Grim didn't know how he knew, but he knew without a doubt that something was wrong.

/ / /

Grim stared out across from himself, all around him was a beautiful field. He knew that it wasn't right though, all his senses were screaming at him that it wasn't right. The only problem was, that he had no idea what to do about it.

“Sometimes your eyes will deceive you,” spoke an elderly voice that echoed all around him, “But you aren't normal Grim, and your senses will always perceive The Truth.”

Grim didn't bother trying to locate the voice, he knew better than that by now. He'd been training for months, and whoever was teaching him never actually appeared. Yet he could always senses them, which meant that they had to be like him, different, to be able to hide so easily at all times.

“How do I see it then, The Truth?” questioned Grim

A chuckle echoed.

“Do not see with your eyes Grim,” answered the voice, “See with everything else...”

/ / /

Grim clutched his head and whimpered softly, that had been a memory, and not just knowledge like he was used to. But what had that elderly voice meant, that he wasn't normal? Also, why in the world had he been training, and what had he been training for?

But that feeling from the memory, it was the same thing he was feeling right now. Which meant that his eyes were deceiving him, he needed to somehow look past what he could see, if he wanted to truly see The Truth.

Grim slowly allowed his eyes to close, and focused on his senses, or more specifically, the sense that was screaming at him something was wrong. Slowly the darkness of his eyelids began to change, vague shapes, lines made of different colors began to appear.

It amazed him and shocked him at the same time, and within minutes he could see everything that was around him, even though his eyes were closed. The first thing he noticed was the lines of Pets and Humans, were brighter than the lines of the surrounding objects. The second thing he noticed, was the lines that made up the old man, where overlapped by a massive connection of lines making up some type of massive bird. Equally shocking, was the image of a human overlapping the Corgi.

Grim opened his eyes, and stared at the old man and dog. He wondered why they were hiding themselves like that, why would a massive bird want to appear human, and why would a human want to appear as a dog.

His though process was lost though, as a paw started shacking his shoulder. Pushing the odd occurrences and his thoughts aside, Grim turned and found himself looking into the concerned face of Zach. Quickly he gave the young rabbit a reassuring smile, and Zach smiled back gratefully.

“So what did the Vet say?” questioned Zach

“She thinks my memory will return on its own,” answered Grim pleased, “Which I can't wait for, not knowing anything about myself is rather annoying.”

Zach chuckled.

“Oh,” Zach blinked as he stopped chuckling, “Where are you going to stay?”

Grim stared at Zach for a few minutes, and than found himself slapping his forehead in frustration. He'd been so busy wanting to get his memories back, that he hadn't even thought of what he'd do if he didn't get them. At the moment he had no idea who his Owner was, or where he lived, leaving him practically alone in a place he didn't even know.

“You can stay with me,” said a voice from behind them.

Grim and Zach turned around, and found themselves faced with an old man. Grim's eyes narrowed slightly, as his senses blocked something invisible from touching him. Before he could say anything though, Zach had nodded, patted him on the shoulder and said.

“That's fantastic, see you later Grim.”

Grim watched Zach go, and turned and growled at the old man, “What the hell did you just do..bird...”

The old man's eyes widened, and he stared at Grim for a few minutes, yellow eyes glowing brightly. Grim once again felt odd invisible things hit his senses, only to be blocked, batted aside, and shattered before they got anywhere near him.

“You're quite an interesting wolf Grim,” said the old man, “What exactly are you?”

Grim wondered what to say, he wasn't even sure what a truthful answer would be. It was obvious that he wasn't a normal Pet, yet anything other than that he didn't know. Maybe Zach had been right, perhaps he was some type of Psychic?

Finally he decided on an answer, “I'm...Different.”

The old man grinned, “I see,” he mumbled before speaking, “I'm Pete, and you'll be staying with King and I.”

Grim stared at Pete for a few moments, he wasn't sure what he should do. On one paw, he had no idea where this town was, when his memories would return, or if he could even find somewhere else to stay, not to mention what this Pete was capable of. Yet his own senses seemed to protect him, so he would be somewhat safe.

“Fine,” said Grim softly.

Pete laughed...

Last edited by Hanku on Sat Jul 30, 2011 11:23 pm, edited 1 time in total.

Sat Jul 30, 2011 6:14 am

Luna werewolf

Joined: Sun Jul 10, 2011 12:15 pmPosts: 228Location: I'M BEHIND YOU!

Re: Housepets: Grim's Awakening

That's a brillent, awesome, and very unique fan fiction. One of the best. Ever. liked it a lot.

That's a brillent, awesome, and very unique fan fiction. One of the best. Ever. liked it a lot.

It's always nice to hear someone likes what you wrote. I'm pleased.

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great. this first part was a bit long for my taste, but still great.

Sorry you think it's too long, I apologize in advance for upcoming chapters.

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This is awesome. Like really, really awesome.

I'm glad your enjoying it.

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Also, I think you broke Kizer. ^_^

Umm...oops

_________________Detail makes the difference between boring and terrific writing. It's the difference between a pencil sketch and a lush oil painting. As a writer, words are your paint. Use all the colors. ~ Rhys Alexander

Grim stared at Pete for a few moments, he wasn't sure what he should do. On one paw, he had no idea where this town was, when his memories would return, or if he could even find somewhere else to stay, not to mention what this Pete was capable of. Yet his own senses seemed to protect him, so he would be somewhat safe.

Grim leaned silently against the wall at the Vet's Office, his eyes closed and arms crossed as he focused on his mysterious senses. He'd figured that he might as well practice seeing 'The Truth' well King was getting his checkup or whatever it was, and somehow he knew that being able to see The Truth would be very important.

As he stared at the multi-colored lines, he couldn't help but wonder why he saw The Truth like this. Why did it appear as lines, was that how it was supposed to appear, or was he not seeing it properly. It didn't make sense that it wasn't more detailed, and it concerned him that he might be doing something wrong.

He was still focusing, when he noticed Pete moving out of the corner of his vision. It was an interesting thing, with his senses focused he could see Pete walking as a human, yet also see the massive bird under the illusion moving as well.

“Grim,” said Pete.

Grim's mental eyes narrowed, as hundreds of colored lines flew towards him as Pete spoke. Even with his eyes closed, and seeing Truth, he couldn't quite make out how he was being protected. All he could see were the lines being deflected or destroyed when they approached, as if his body was surrounded by a shield.

Sighing Grim slowly opened his eyes, and found himself faced with Pete. His eyes widened, floating ethereally behind Pete was a massive blue bird that he didn't recognize the species of. Blinking in stunned shock, he frowned slightly when the image disappeared, like nothing had been there at all.

Realizing Pete was starring at him, Grim quickly filled the odd occurrence away, letting it join the quickly growing pile inside his mind. He knew that he needed some answers soon, or he was going to start going insane.

“What is it Pete?” he questioned, pausing before he softly whispered, “Could you please stop doing whatever you're doing.”

“I thought I'd let you know King's almost done,” answered Pete cheerfully, his eyes narrowing as he continued, “I don't know what you are Grim, but to be resistant to my hypnotic assurance is quite something.”

Grim's eyes narrowed as he felt more things be reflected by his senses, something he was quickly coming to recognize. Every single time Pete talked it would happen, yet Pete didn't seem strained or anything. Blinking he realized what was happening, and frowned softly.

“You can't stop it,” he said quietly, “It's constant, likely to help you blend in.”

Pete grinned and nodded slightly, seemingly happy that Grim had understood the situation so fast.

But Grim was able to pick something else out, it was almost like Pete was angry. He didn't know if Pete was angry he'd been figured out so easily, or if he was angry because his hypnotic assurance didn't work, but either way it put Grim slightly on edge.

“Indeed, my apologies,” said Pete seriously.

Pete turned and walked away, and Grim stared at him for a few moments. He was beginning to wonder if the darkness shattering had been a good thing, this wasn't turning out to be as amazing as he thought it would be.

Pete was obviously not normal, and it worried Grim that the bird seemed to be so uncaring that he hypnotized everyone by simply speaking. Something else about the bird bothered him, but he didn't quite know what it was.

/ / /

Grim stood starring out at the ocean, his trenchcloak fluttering faintly in the breeze. Towering beside him was a massive Green Dragon, yet he was perfectly at ease. Neither of them moved, spoke or acted, simply starring out at the calming water.

The Green Dragon stopped speaking, as a large red portal appeared hovering in the air in front of them. Both of them winced as they felt blasts of heat exit the portal, and the smell of smoke and fire filled their senses.

“Grim!” shouted a loud panicked voice.

Grim lost his playful, calm look immediately as he moved forward. Stepping directly into the air and walking to a stop in front of the portal, his trenchcloak billowed eerily from the heat, and his fur singed slightly but he paid it no mind.

“Report!” he barked

“It's terrible Grim, Pete's...

/ / /

Grim winced and clutched his head, another memory filling his mind. It took him a moment to regain his composure, and as he didn't he couldn't stop his eyes from scanning the room for Pete. He spotted the old man standing calmly in the hallway to the Vet Rooms, leaning carelessly on his wooden cane.

Grim pulled his eyes away from Pete, and a frown slowly spread across his muzzle. He didn't understand what that memory had been about, why was everything so confusing!

Did he know Pete from before, if so, why didn't Pete recognize him? Why had that person called him to report whatever Pete had done, and what had Pete done that caused them to need to speak with him? Not to mention, how in the world had he walked on the air?

What in the world was he, and was Pete the same thing as him. Is that why he could see Truth, is that why Pete had that odd hypnotic power? None of it made sense, and he couldn't help but feel it would get worse before it got better.

Grim was shaken from his thoughts as someone slammed into him, and as he fell backwards through the air he reacted without thinking. His body collapsing in on itself, his arms wrapping around whoever had hit him as he rolled backwards and back to his feet.

Grim blinked a few times, and looked down at the young Corgi held tightly in his furry arms. King had an irritated look on his face, that was currently being clouded by a faint embarrassed blush. Grim couldn't stop himself as he chuckled lightly, and moving his arms he let King step away from him, even as he patted the Corgi on the shoulder.

“Not a Vet dog hey,” he chuckled.

“It was my first time, and it isn't something I want to repeat often,” mumbled King.

Grim continued to chuckle, but inside he was frowning. It was obvious from that statement that King had never been a dog before, and this was obviously his first time. But why would a human transform into an animal, and than allow themselves to do something they obviously didn't want to?

“Well since King is done, let's head home,” said Pete brightly.

Grim nodded faintly, and turned and headed towards the door. He was stopped by a hand wrapping around his shoulder, and before he could react the entire world began to spin around him. Everything faded away, dissolving into nothingness as the world spun, and a horrible pain began to burn in his chest.

The pain was incredible, it felt like his stomach was being melted. For a moment everything around him seemed to change, becoming a mysterious starry place that he felt he'd been before. He caught a glimpse of a massive Green Dragon, before everything faded and he found himself standing outside of a house.

“Ugh,” groaned King looking green.

“Aren't Astral Jumps fun,” chuckled Pete.

Grim blinked dazed, the odd painful feeling inside of himself suddenly flaring even more painfully. His entire body suddenly felt like it was on fire, and his head felt like it was breaking apart. Images began to assault him, and he stumbled backwards, paws raising to clutch his head.

Pete and King turned quickly towards him, but Grim's eyes had glazed over as the pain and images consumed him. He was unaware of the concerned confusion on King's muzzle, or the pure look of stunned shock on Pete's.

“It isn't possible,” whispered Pete, his pupil's dilated by fear, “No being can contain such power in a physical form.”

Grim's world faded into blackness.

/ / / / /Pete's House (Outside)

King sat silently at the bottom of the stairs in front of his new home, his butt firmly planted in the snow to try and dull the pain he felt. He didn't know how, but he knew that Pete had somehow gotten the Vet to use the biggest, most uncomfortable needle possible.

So far he wasn't enjoying his time as a dog at all, he'd thought that Pete was trying to prove to him being a Pet was fun. But at the moment he'd only experienced the downsides, like having to eat kibble, do his business outside, and having to visit the Vet.

But that wasn't even the worst of it, he was naked with only a stupid collar on, he could already feel a few fleas biting under his fur, and the panting was driving him crazy. So far nothing he'd experienced made his opinion change, being Feral had to be better than this right?

“I wonder if Grim's okay,” mumbled King his thoughts drifting.

Grim had collapsed right after Pete had used that weird teleportation thing, and he'd been extremely worried. His worry had only increased when Pete said it wasn't anything to worry about, he might have been more likely to believe the Magical Gryphon, if Pete hadn't spoken in a voice strained as it hid emotions.

But he hadn't been able to argue with his 'Owner', and instead had stood silently as Pete carried Grim inside. He hadn't been able to stand for long, and within minutes he was once again rubbing his butt and trying to numb the horrible pain from the Vet.

He hadn't been happy when Pete shouted out to him a minute later, “So, enjoy your first trip to the vet?”

He'd practically forced himself to stop growling, which had shocked him to the core. It amazed him that he'd already grown so used to his new body, and that it's instincts were already beginning to meld with his own. If he hadn't hated it so much, he might have been fascinated with how the Gryphon had done it.

His anger had only increased with Pete's next shout, “Go cool off in the snow until the shots stop hurting, I need to make sure Grim is okay.”

He hadn't even thought as he snapped back sarcastically, “Yeah thanks, you always know exactly how to make it all better.”

He hadn't thought Pete's idea would be any help, but the second he'd sat down he had been proven wrong. The snow helped numb the shots a lot, the fact it was so soft and fluffy, and easily slid in between his fur seemed to help.

It was an odd experience for him, sitting in the snow as a dog. He'd already noticed multiple things he'd never noticed as a human, his heightened sight, hearing and smell all allowing him to experience new things.

He supposed that was one benefit of his transformation, which was good, since he hadn't experienced very many. As his thoughts continued to wander, King couldn't but try and figure out why Pete was doing this to him. He went thinking about the situation how he always did, by talking out-loud to himself.

“What's the point of making me suffer anyway?” questioned King softly, “I can't eat what I want, I can't go where I want, it's the same thing as prison!”

Pete's plan wasn't making any sense, it frustrated him so much.

“What's the point!” growled King

King stared into nothing for a few seconds, and then dropped his head down into his paws. He couldn't believe he'd missed it, the answer to everything Pete was doing was so obvious.

“There isn't a point,” sighed King, “Nice going King, now you know the truth, and the truth is that the world is a terrible and hateful place.”

King tried to think of some way to deny his current thought process, but he couldn't think of anything. In fact, the more he thought about what Pete was doing, and the answer he'd just come to, the more his thoughts kept going back to the same thing.

“Everyone suffers alone,” whispered King painfully.

King was so lost in his inner torment, that he failed to hear the footsteps as they crunched the snow and walked towards him. As he continued to talk to himself, he completely missed the grey dog standing over him and starring at him weirdly.

“Not that I want to interrupt your monologue,” said a bright voice, “But do you wanna fight over a squeaky bone?”

King looked up with wide eyes, and found himself starring at a dog he found oddly familiar. Grey fur, blue eyes, pointed ears, and wearing a bandana around a dark-yellow collar. It took him only a moment to understand why he recognized this dog, and he began to stare and stutter in his mind.

King began to blush, snapped from his thoughts as the dog spoke. He couldn't think of what to do, he couldn't think of what to say, and he found himself growing more and more red.

“Y-you're that...that...uh...no, nothing's wrong!” said King loudly as he tried to form a sentence, his mind going a mile a minute until he finally decided on, “Hi.”

The dog didn't understand what was wrong, he was being friendly, hadn't barked, and as far as he knew he didn't smell bad. So he couldn't figure out why his hopefully new friend seemed to be so embarrassed and shy, it took him a moment to decide on a proper course of action.

“I won't bite!” he insisted.

King's eyes went wide as the dog turned around, lifting his heavy coat and tail, and then shoving his butt towards him.

“It's okay if you want to sniff first,” said the dog.

King could do nothing but stare, his mind having gone blank as he tried to figure out what to do. Unfortunately all he could come up with, was nothing, and instead he began to blush more and more, his embarrassment increased by the awkwardness he felt.

The dog shrugged and lowered his tail and jacket, turning he faced his new friend again. He blinked at seeing the young corgi so low to the ground, his muzzle bright red and only one eye opened and ears splayed back.

“Okay okay, how about I just say, Hi,” said the dog smiling, “I'm Fox!

King stared for a few more moments, wondering what on earth he should do. Here was the dog he'd kidnapped when he was human, the reason he'd gone to jail, and one of the main contributors to the events that caused him to become a dog.

Finally he decided on the simplest thing, and said softly at almost a whisper.

“I'm King.”

/ / / / /

“You promised me you'd protect her!”

A majestic looking sky blue eagle stared at him with pain-clouded eyes, and Grim dropped to his knees as he apologized relentlessly. He knew that he'd failed, he hadn't been strong enough to protect her, he'd broken his promise.

“Your honor means nothing to me Grim, I just want to KILL YOU!”

Grim dodged to the side, massive talons cutting through the ground where he'd been standing. He didn't understand why this was happening, why was Xeyon attacking him. Why had he turned against all of them? Hadn't he been loyal, hadn't he done exactly what he was created for? It just didn't make sense!

“Grim, your leg is too far forward, relax.”

Grim winced as a hard cane slammed into his leg from the front, forcing it backwards and into the proper position. It irritated him how his Master and Sensei treated him, but he was learning so much, and the things he learned were amazing.

“Now do you see Grim, do you see The Truth?”

Grim stared around him, his eyes wide with wonder. The field had faded away, and he was standing in the middle of a beautiful building, the marble floor gleaming under him. He'd finally mastered seeing The Truth, he could now do so even with his eyes open.

The stupid lines had vanished, and he saw everyone how it truly was. No longer did he need to force himself to see it, everyone was visible to him as the truth. With this he would be able to do it, he'd be able to see the truth in their eyes, and he'd never suffer a betrayal again.

“AUGH! It's you're fault Grim, now you'll die! KILL HIM!”

Grim didn't move, instead silver flashes flicked around him, blocking claws, paws, hooves, and everything else that reached him. Swords were shattered, arrows were split, spears were stopped dead. Nothing could pass his defense, he'd spent too long learning, he was the Highest for a reason.

“Grim, you don't need to take the weight of everything on yourself.”

Grim keeled silently in the graveyard, his head bowed low. All around him hundreds of tombstones stared at him, each of them holding the remains of his friends. He wasn't strong enough, he hadn't practiced like he'd been told. He had so much potential, and he'd wasted it, and now he'd suffered the price.

“Your job isn't to protect this world Grim, that isn't why I created you.”

Grim stared across from him, at the floating silhouette that lectured him. His paws were clenched, and he struggled not to bring it forth and destroy this insect. He wasn't some pawn to be used, he had long ago thrown away his loyalty to this thing.

No longer was he a warrior of destruction, a blade that could cut through anyone and anything. He'd finally learned the truth about himself, and at the same time he'd been given a goal. He would use his ill-gained power, but he would use it to protect, and nothing would change his mind on that.

“E--m-- will protect you, granting you the power to do my tasks.”

Grim stared at E--m-- it floated in the air in front of him, terrifying, yet beautiful at the same time. He could feel the power that flowed through it, and he knew, that with it, he would be able to protect, everyone...

Grim's eyes snapped open, and he flung himself forward, muzzle open in a silent scream. Panting heavily he barely noticed as something thick fell down to his lap, or the sound of a door opening behind him.

He couldn't believe the things he'd seen, had those truly been memories that belonged to him. Deep within himself he knew it was true, that he'd experienced those events himself. He remembered the hard training of his Master, the pain of being forced to watch his best friends die, and the feeling of his power.

Grim knew without a doubt that he had power, he could feel it, just beneath his fur. Raw and tense, ready to be called forth, and with the ability to do nearly anything. Yet he didn't quite know how to use it, his memories were cloudy and distant, and his knowledge vague at best.

But despite being able to feel his power, and it assuring him his memories held truth. He couldn't help but feel that something big was wrong, something important in the memories he witnessed wasn't true. But he didn't get that feeling from all the memories he'd seen, only some of them, and it worried him.

Grim's senses flickered, and he easily made out the shape of Pete behind him. He could see the old man as if he was looking directly at him, despite the fact his back was to him, and he was looking in the opposite direction.

“Pete,” said Grim softly, “What do you want?”

Grim turned and looked towards Pete, only slightly shocked to no longer see a human, but what he now knew was a blue Gryphon. He could tell that Pete was still shaped like a human, but he could see the Truth, and no illusion could stop his sight now unless he let it.

“What are you?” questioned Pete

Grim blinked, stunned by the blunt question.

“I'm not sure,” answered Grim, sighing as he began to explain, “I can barely remember anything of my past, all the flashes I see are murky and indistinct.”

Pete's eyes widened, and a horrified look spread across his beak. For someone with as much power inside them as Grim to not have memories, was an incredibly dangerous thing. What if Grim accidentally used his power and destroyed the town, or shattered the transformation he'd put on Joel to make him King.

“You have Amnesia, that isn't good,” said Pete worried, “Your very powerful Grim, so powerful that a single accident could be catastrophic.”

Grim winced slightly, and nodded in understanding. He'd already been thinking about that, what would happen if he used his power without meaning to. It was easy for him to know how Pete felt, because he could fell his power flowing through him, and knew that he had more then enough to easily do something terrible.

“I know that,” said Grim, “But at the moment I can't do much about it.”

Pete stared, his mind running through hundreds of ideas. The best thing would be to seal away Grim's powers until he remembered, but he could tell right now he wouldn't be able to. He would need to unleash his true form, and he couldn't do that without a proper Avatar, and King wasn't even close to ready for that.

“I am what is called a superbeing,” explained Pete, “Without an Avatar my power is limited, but I should be able to at least teach you enough to make you safer.”

Grim frowned and stared at Pete, his mind trying to figure out what to do. He knew that his power was dangerous, but did he want to learn anything from Pete. He already felt uncomfortable having agreed to stay with Pete, and he didn't find himself trusting the Gryphon at all.

But than again, what choice did he have? His power was immense, and he could already feel it bubbling beneath the surface of his fur. He couldn't chance something dangerous happening, and he didn't really have any other options.

“I don't have much choice,” mumbled Grim, “But I have a few questions first.”

Pete raised a large eyebrow, but Grim didn't even notice. He was too busy thinking of the questions he wanted to ask, and trying to decide the best things to ask, of the couple thousand questions he knew he had.

“Very well,” said Pete suddenly, “But you may only ask three.”

This time Grim's muzzle shifted, a look of irritated annoyance appearing on his face. He had a great deal of questions, and only being able to ask three wasn't really helpful. He knew that he'd need to make his questions count, and it only took him a few minutes to decide which ones to ask.

“You say you're a superbeing,” said Grim, waiting for Pete to nod before he continued, “So why are you in this town disguised as a human?”

“I'm here watching over King,” answered Pete simply, before shrugging and figuring he might as well explain, “I want King to become my Avatar, but he isn't ready for that yet, so I'm here with him to help him develop.”

Grim nodded slightly, he didn't quite understand what an Avatar was, but he understood that it must be very important. For Pete, who claimed to be a superbeing, to stay in a town and act human just to watch King, proved that beyond the shadow of a doubt.

Grim knew this was a waste of a question, but it intrigued him so much he couldn't help but ask, “Why is King a corgi?”

“King was human, and he's a little jaded towards Pets,” began Pete, “He believes Humans shouldn't have Pets, and wants to free them from what he considers slavery.”

Grim blinked a few times, and wondered why on earth King would think like that. It was common knowledge that Pets wanted to have Owners, wanted to live in a house and be comfy and loved. How on earth had King gotten such a skewed idea about Pets, and how had it developed into such obviously misplaced hate.

“I turned King into a dog so he could learn from the source how wrong he is,” said Pete grinning, “I plan to leave him like that until I believe he's learned his lesson.”

Grim nodded slightly, but he couldn't help but wonder if that was fair. To transform a human unwillingly into an animal, didn't that like break rules or something? Yet at the same time, he agreed with the lesson Pete was trying to teach King.

“Do you know someone named Xeyon?” questioned Grim, “It's a name I saw in one of my recently returned memories.”

Pete's eyes went wide, and he stuttered for a few seconds before he breathed in sharply. Grim blinked at the reaction, and than found himself stumbling backwards as a massive wave of 'something' slammed into whatever invisible thing protected him.

“Ugh,” groaned Grim glaring at Pete, “What the hell was that?”

“Forgive me, I tried to see into your mind,” said Pete unapologetic, “I wanted to see the memory where you heard that name, and reacted without thinking.”

Grim just continued to glare at Pete, who was starring at him with a strange look in his eyes. After a few minutes Grim just sighed and shook his head, he figured that if Pete was a superbeing, he must not be used to not getting his way.

A few seconds passed by, and than a few minutes. Grim looked up and was surprised to see Pete no longer looking at him, but seemingly starring into nothingness with glazed eyes. Grim blinked, and felt a shiver run up his spine as the unnerving silence stretched on.

“Xeyon is a forbidden name among us,” said Pete breaking the unnerving silence, “He is a superbeing that betrayed everyone, the fact that his name is in your memories worries me.”

“I apologize,” said Grim, “I agree to learn from you, but only the basics.”

Pete opened his mouth to ask why, only to be cut off as Grim spoke.

“I don't trust you.”

Pete blinked a stab of unnatural hurt flowing through his heart, immediately he hid it though and began to chuckle. Grim wasn't fooled, he easily saw through Pete's fake emotions, and wondered what about him not trusting Pete would hurt the Gryphon so much.

_________________Detail makes the difference between boring and terrific writing. It's the difference between a pencil sketch and a lush oil painting. As a writer, words are your paint. Use all the colors. ~ Rhys Alexander

Fri Aug 12, 2011 6:27 pm

kurowolfe

Joined: Sat Jun 18, 2011 7:18 pmPosts: 2623Location: Sabah, Malaysia

Re: Housepets: Grim's Awakening

That's one of the longest updates that I've ever seen, Hanku. And long =

I feel kinda bad for Grim, having to suffer so much with the eerie flashbacks and images when he still didn't know his real identity. And the Truth felt more like a double-edged sword to me than a blessing or power. Scary...

I think this is the first time I've seen Pete being depicted as being less powerful than someone else, and more human, in fact. It's kinda disarming, but also a really, really interesting take on him.

And I really like the level of detail in describing each of the character's inner thoughts and emotions, and I can relate somehow with some of them, especially King...

I'm also glad that my character thoughts and feelings are coming across, I was worried that those things wouldn't be visible to the readers, and that I was only seeing them because I was the one writing it.

Sorry the update is so long, I just like my chapters big.

_________________Detail makes the difference between boring and terrific writing. It's the difference between a pencil sketch and a lush oil painting. As a writer, words are your paint. Use all the colors. ~ Rhys Alexander

Grim leaned against the trunk of the massive tree, relaxing easily above the ground on one of the thicker branches. At his current height he towered over the house, and was able to see a large portion of the town.

He took the time and try and memorize the towns layout, but without knowing what any of the buildings were, it was mostly a pointless task. He had managed to spot a few Pets wandering around though, some were chatting, others running and playing in the snow, and he thought he spotted two cats kissing.

He supposed overall, as he observed his surroundings and let his eyes roam the town, he was enjoying himself. This...'Babylon Gardens', was an interesting place, it appeared to be an average middle-class neighborhood, but he could tell the developer had put a great deal of effort into it's creation.

It might not be visible to some, but he could tell, and knew that he would enjoy living here.

Letting out a soft yawn Grim adjusted himself, and thought back on his conversation with Pete. He'd discussed multiple topics with the Superbeing Gryphon, ranging from simple things, like living with them, to complicated things, like how he would learn how to wield and hide his incredible power.

Pete had given him the most basic exercise he could perform, telling him it was something a learner took about a month to learn at least. It was a basic materialization ability, allowing the user to form their energy into simple objects with basic training, and highly detailed objects when their skill with it increased.

He'd been told the basics of how to do it, but Pete had told him that learning exactly how it was done, was part of the training. Grim had been excited and eager to learn, happy to be doing something that connected him with his forgotten memories.

Pete had turned around to leave the room, but stopped as a massive influx of power appeared. The Gryphon had turned around, to find himself faced with a fully-formed sphere of blackish-red energy. It was the size of a good Globe, and floated peacefully above Grim's paws, not a single deformity in sight.

Grim chuckled slightly as he recalled the look on Pete's face, one full of shook and disbelief. Pete had been unable to believe Grim had done it so easily, and he'd told Grim to do it again, well he was watching.

He'd done just that, instead this time he focused on making it an octagon instead. Pete's beak had stayed open for minutes after it appeared floating carelessly above his paws, and then the Gryphon had started to chuckle deeply.

Pete had told Grim that his mind and body must remember using his power subconsciously, and were allowing him to control it with ease. The Gryphon further speculated, that Grim's control would be just as high as it had been when he had his memories, and it was simply a task of re-learning all the different things he could do.

Needless to say Grim had been extremely pleased, and immediately asked Pete for the next exercise. Pete though shook his massive head, and told Grim that he should go do something fun, relax, play, read, anything but practice.

Grim had been confused, and it must have been apparent on his face, because Pete had explained. Pete told him that his control was obviously high enough that he wasn't a danger, but without his memories, he damaged his body when using his power. Pete told Grim that he shouldn't use his power, until Pete was able to confirm he was using it properly.

Grim wasn't pleased, but he understood where Pete was coming from. That was how he'd found himself in this tree, and the reason he wasn't doing anything but relaxing. Okay, so that wasn't true, he'd totally been practicing anyways.

Since Pete hadn't given him anything else to practice, Grim had been performing the same materialization exercise as before. He'd managed to create a large range of objects, from balls, spheres, and blocks, all the way to pens, a beautiful knife, and a book he'd seen in his memories, complete with text.

He was now much faster at materializing things, and could create almost anything he pictured in his mind. He'd also discovered that his power could be brought forth up to two meters from his body, but any further caused him to loose control of the object immediately.

Along with that, he'd also discovered something horrifying. His power was extremely dangerous, even though he seemed to be immune, nothing around him was. A ball he'd made touched the branch beside him for only a second, and it had aged, rotted, and decayed before disintegrating into dust within the span of seconds.

Sighing Grim looked up towards the sky, his eyes locking onto a few clouds and following them. A smile slowly stretched across his muzzle, and he found himself relaxing even more deeply then before. He didn't know why, but something about just watching the sky was wonderful, and he couldn't help but feel that he'd used to do it often.

Grim was snapped from his cloud watching though, when his seventh sense flared brightly. Grim had called his unique ability to see the world, all three-hundred and sixty degrees around him, his seventh sense. Anything in a certain radius around him, was tracked by his mind, which warned him if something was happening.

He was quite certain how it worked, but so far it hadn't steered him wrong. It allowed him to track everything around him, no matter how small or large, even more important, was that it perceived Truth, just like he did. It seemed to be almost always on though, even though it could be mostly muted. When his seventh sense flared though, everything around him became impossible to ignore.

For example, right at this moment he was aware of the bird in it's nest above him, two Pet dogs walking under the tree, a Pet cat resting in the grass a few inches away, a leaf falling to the ground, and that Pete had just left the house, and was standing on the porch.

“Grim.”

Frowning slightly at being disturbed by Pete, especially after being told to rest and relax, he looked down towards the Gryphon. His eyes widened and then narrowed slightly at Pete's human face, which had a worried look practically etched onto it.

Grim had decided it was too bothersome to see King and Pete as they really were, especially since it was unnerving to see something, and hear and perceive something completely different. So he'd told his seventh sense to stop perceiving King and Pete, which allowed him to still sense them, but not see them differently than anyone else.

He...err, wasn't exactly sure how he'd done it. But he didn't really care, it just made more sense to do it this way. If Pete wanted to be a human, then that's what Grim wanted to see him as, same thing with King with being a dog.

“Hm?” grunted Grim

“I was wondering if you'd go look for King,” said Pete pleasantly, “I'm worried that he hasn't returned, he isn't used to his Corgi self yet, and I'm slightly worried.”

Grim blinked at the very real concern in Pete's voice, but he quickly focused on what danger King could be in. He trusted King enough to know he wouldn't tell anyone he was human, not that anyone would believe him, but he knew that suddenly shifting forms must be pretty disorientating.

King likely wouldn't have gotten used to his Corgi body, and therefore would have difficulty doing things most dogs took for granted. He'd had the same problem after waking from the darkness, but at least his body had remembered what to do. King on the other paw, had been a human earlier today, and therefore had no knowledge to fall back on.

“I'll take a look,” said Grim seriously.

Pete nodded gratefully, and than felt his eyes widen as Grim slipped off the side of the branch he'd been resting on. He tapped into his own significant power to help, only to blink as the wolf twisted, plummeted for a second, and landed on the ground with an unnatural cat-like grace.

Pete quickly added this to his odd observations about Grim, which he found had grown quite long in the last few hours, and then turned and headed back inside. He had a few things he needed to do, and he knew that Grim could be trusted to aide King no matter what.

Grim straightened and titled his neck, letting it crack a few times to relieve tension. Then he lifted his muzzle into the air, and began breathing in deeply as he searched for King's scent. He hadn't yet gotten a chance to get a complete profile of King's scent, but he knew he'd be able to at least recognize the young Corgi's scent if he caught it.

Sure enough a few seconds later he caught something, a faint musky scent that he recognized from when King had collided with him at the Vet. It was slightly diluted by the snow, but he was confident enough in his scenting skills to start following it.

Of all the things he'd remembered, and of all the knowledge he'd already regained. He discovered that he knew an almost ridiculous amount of things about tracking, and he wondered if his job had been focused on it for some reason.

His footsteps crunched the snow beneath his feet, and he made his way along the sidewalk, stopping to sniff deeply every few minutes. He barely paid attention to where he was going, instead focusing on King's scent and just letting his feet carry him in the direction he needed to go.

Eventually he found himself in the middle of a small snowy clearing, where the imprints of two dogs were easily visible in the snow. He picked up King's scent from one, and then the scent of a dog he didn't recognize. Along with this was the heavy scent of saliva, meaning King and whoever he was with had likely been playing with some sort of chew toy.

The imprints weren't that disturbed, and the scents were fairly fresh, meaning King and his companion hadn't left long ago. Sniffing deeply he recorded King's scent, and the other one, he would put a face too it later.

Breathing in deeply again, Grim turned left, and continued his hunt for King.

/ / / / /Earlier w. King

King lay on his back, his eyes closed and a paw on his head as he breathed heavily. His fur was stained with sweat, especially underneath his black scarf that had made his neck even hotter under the collar Pete had magicked on him.

It was odd, he was laying directly on the snow almost completely naked, yet he felt hotter than he'd ever felt during winter even with clothes on. Worst in his mind, was he'd gotten hot by playing 'make the bone squeak' with the dog he'd helped kidnap, and his PETA partner had almost killed.

Yet, he'd also had more fun than he'd had in a long time. His life had been hectic lately, one job after another, fired again and again for his thoughts on Pets. But, playing with Fox had taken his mind off everything, right at this moment, he felt free and happier than he'd been in months.

It felt...nice.

“Ahahahaha!” laughed King well panting, “Man, I haven't had that much fun doing absolutely nothing in a very long time.”

“Pff, it's nothing,” said Fox smiling before he continued softly, “I just needed to get out of the house while dad's fuming.”

King's eyes snapped open and he turned to look towards Fox, he'd easily caught the tone of slight worry in his new friends voice. It'd been impossible for him to miss, he'd spent a few months learning how to read emotions, and it was painfully obvious how worried Fox sounded.

It bothered him that his new friend was worried, and he couldn't help but wonder if there was anything he could do about it. If he had to learn to live as a dog, if this was going to be his life, he might as well start with Fox, who'd been so nice and kind to him.

“Huh? What over?” he questioned cautiously.

King watched as Fox turned his head towards him, and even though Fox looked uncaring, King could see the worry, and fear in his friends eyes. He couldn't image what could make Fox scared, in the short time he'd spent with him Fox had always been cheerful.

“Oh, PETA tried to kidnap me earlier this year,” said Fox uncaring, “Apparently one of the guys dad caught escaped from the courthouse on the day of the trial.”

King struggled to keep his eyes from widening, and he turned to look up at the sky, unable to look at Fox anymore. It was because of him, he was the reason Fox was so scared and worried right now. Fox was worried he'd come and kidnap him again, and for the life of him King couldn't stop the horrible pain in his chest at the thought.

His teeth clenched together and he ground out, “Oh uh...that must suck?”

He couldn't think of anything else to say, not that he would have been able to. He could barely speak as it was, his mind whirling with thoughts, and his heart pounding with a pain he didn't understand. For the first time since he was young, King began to think his thoughts on Pets might be wrong.

He wasn't comfortable where that left him, he'd always had one opinion since his childhood so long ago. If he'd been wrong, then everything he did, everything he'd worked towards, all of it was for nothing.

“Eh, I'm not too worried about it,” said Fox smiling brightly, “It's not like the guy is going to show his face around here or anything.”

King almost couldn't contain his wince.

“But if he ever did,” Fox lifted his hands into the air in a strangling motion, “Would I ever show him a thing or two! I would grab him by the throa...”

Fox was cut off as King sprung upright, his eyes wide and pupils dilated.

“Ahahaha YEAH!” laughed King nervously, “That is such a...thing you would do, SO how 'bout that squeaky bone?”

Fox seemed to catch that something about the subject had spooked King, and chuckled and allowed subject to be changed. Rolling over he picked the squeak toy up in his muzzle, and tossed it through the air towards King.

King rolled backwards and caught the squeak toy in his mouth, grinning he hurled it back through the air towards Fox. Tossing the toy like this was actually harder for him then it looked, because it used muscles and skills he'd never used before as a human. Catching some in his muzzle, was harder than catching something in his hands had been.

They played for another half hour, changing the game multiple times but keeping the squeaky toy as the main object. Finally though both of them were squeaked out, and began to wander back towards the town.

As they walked King knew he needed to say something, his paws wrapped together behind his back, his ears splayed back, and he looked up at Fox with a nervous, yet embarrassed expression.

King continued to walk, but now he couldn't bring himself to look up at Fox. Instead he looked down at the ground, his head slouched over slightly and a faint blush barely visible on his muzzle.

“Well things have been...” King hesitated, “Changing, so to speak, and for a while there I'd given up hope.”

King collected his thoughts, his mind going a mile a minute as he thought about how to say what he wanted to. He wanted to express his gratitude to Fox for helping him out of his slump, yet at the same time he also didn't want Fox to think he was being mushy or anything.

“But you reminded me what it all used to be like, when I was younger and happier,” King smiled softly, “And I guess, there's some hope after all.”

King stopped walking, and turned to face Fox, who was starring at him without blinking. King's faint blush began to intensify, and he found himself looking anywhere but at Fox. Fox realizing he'd made King uncomfortable, quickly put his paw on King's shoulder, causing the young Corgi to look up at him.

“Ah, you don't need to make a blockbuster production out of it,” chuckled Fox brightly, “You're a Good Dog! King.”

King's blush faded away, and he smiled happily. He wasn't sure if he liked being called a Good Dog of all things, but coming from Fox it didn't sound that bad. Slowly his opinions and thoughts were shifting, and King hadn't even truly noticed how far on his journey he'd already gone.

“In Fact, you should come hang out at the Good Ol' Dogs Club,” suggested Fox, “Everyone'll love you.”

King shrugged, “I guess it couldn't hurt.”

/ / / / /Present w. Grim

Grim made his way silently through the town, staying out of sight of mostly everyone. He didn't want to be disturbed well tracking King, and he figured staying out of sight was the easiest way. Every few seconds he'd stop and sniff, making sure he was still following King's now extremely familiar scent.

He didn't know where King and the other Dog had gone, but he was able to make out multiple other scents joining King's. It was almost like the further into town they went, the more dogs joined King's group.

It was a few minutes later that Grim found himself in front of a building, where he could tell King's scent was particularly strong. This was obviously where the young Corgi had ended up, and since he couldn't smell King's scent leaving, he assumed that King had to still be inside.

Stepping forward his ears twitched, and he picked up what sounded like a large group of Dogs inside. They appeared to be partying, which wasn't that surprising considering it was currently Christmas Eve, and he'd passed at least three other parties on his way here.

He made his way towards the doorway, stepping onto it when something happened. The powerful scent of catnip slammed into him, a highly concentrated amount that caused his vision to blur for a second as he stumbled backwards.

Grim blinked a few times in shock, why in the world would there be catnip at a Dog Gathering. It didn't really make any sense to him, but then again, most Pets were only children, and who knew what mischief they could get up too.

Grim stepped forward, wincing as he stepped through the powerful smell of catnip. He was so annoyed that he wasn't focusing as he shoved the doors open, and he completely misjudged his strength. He misjudged it so badly, that the doors flew open, slamming against the walls, one of them splintering, and the other breaking off its hinges.

Grim didn't allow himself to be embarrassed, and paid no mind to the sight of at least sixty maybe seventy dogs turning towards him. A few of them seemed shocked to see a wolf, but he ignored their looks as he scanned the room.

His eyes stopped on a dog with grey fur, who had a large amount of King's scent on him, and matched the second scent he'd picked up at the snowy clearing. He blinked as he noticed the dog looking at another dog, a look of murder etched into light blue eyes. Vaguely he wondered what the target had done to deserve that, but found he didn't really care.

“You,” said Grim pointing at the grey dog, “Where is King?”

“Why would you want to talk to that Napoleon Cry-Baby?” questioned the dog the grey dog had been glaring at.

Grim didn't even have time to blink as it happened, the grey dog slammed a pawed up fist into the speaker's face. The speaker spun and twisted a couple inches, before crashing painfully into the ground with a thump.

“Shut up Bino,” growled the Grey Dog before turning to Grim, “I'm Fox, why are you looking for King?”

“I live with him,” answered Grim shortly, “Now tell me where he is.”

Grim wasn't even aware as it began to happen, his presence awakening and beginning to spread from him. A horrible aura of despair and icy coldness, that caused even the toughest, most collected dogs to begin shivering.

He didn't care about anything but finding King, and he knew that something bad had happened here. It was the thought of something bad having happened to King that awakened his presence, and as his worry grew, his presence and aura became more and more terrifying.

Of all the various dogs in attendance, only one was capable of shrugging off the horrible feeling that had engulfed the room. Fox's own worry and concern for King, had blended with Grim's presence, leaving him unaffected.

“He ran away,” said Fox sadly.

Grim's eyes narrowed, and he coldly intoned, “Why?”

The temperature in the room seemed to drop, and Fox became aware of Grim's presence as it was momentarily pushed towards him. The grey dog couldn't help but stare for a second, as he swore an aura of black flame-like mist circled Grim, and ice began to ripple and spread across the floor.

When he blinked though, everything had disappeared.

“I invited King to the Christmas Party,” began Fox, “It was going pretty good until...”

/ / /

King smiled happily as he chatted with a few dogs, Fox being with him giving him the courage to speak to people he didn't know. He couldn't believe that he was having such a good time, it wasn't something he would have expected before he became a dog.

Everyone here was a Pet, and all of them were laughing, having fun, and acting completely unlike he'd thought they would. It was this that completely convinced him he was wrong, it was obvious his opinions had been horribly skewed.

“Hey Shorty!”

King turned around, and struggled not to groan. Standing in front of him was Bino, Bino was the leader of this club. He had brown fur, with a large spot on his back that was a much darker shade of brown. His eyes and collar were both green, and his ID Tag was a diamond with a “B” on it.

When Fox had introduced him to Bino, he'd immediately disliked the outspoken dog. Bino appeared to be very selfish and mean, and took his position as the Club Leader to harass everyone under him. It had only taken King a minute to make these observations, so he couldn't imagine what those who'd known Bino their whole lives thought.

He couldn't help but wonder what Bino wanted, he'd already run a marathon the dog off earlier this evening. He hadn't actually meant to, but apparently not screaming in joy and pleasure when meeting the Club Leader, and instead saying “Good for You,” was not something you did around Bino.

“What do you need Bino?” questioned King trying to be polite.

“This is for you,” said Bino holding out a small present with a green bow, “I didn't know you were coming, so I'm sorry it isn't more personal.”

King didn't know what to do, but finally he decided on accepting the gift. Smiling at Bino he reached out and took it, thanking him quietly as he grabbed an end of the bow, and began to pull and open the present.

Immediately he knew what a horrible idea that was, a faint click that his ears easily picked up warning him a moment too late. The side of the gift facing him exploded, and he felt his fur singed and burn as he coughed and hacked. For a moment he thought that was it, but than he caught sight of small green herbs falling around him.

Not knowing what they were, he breathed in to identify them. A horrible scent assaulted him, one that he quickly classified as catnip, something he never wanted to come into contact with again. Yet even as the catnip fell around him, he couldn't bring himself to move or do anything.

“Ha!” laughed Bino, “Gotcha good, didn't I, Shorty?”

King stared down at the exploded present, his ears falling back and his pupils dilated as tears slowly began to form around his eyes.

“What did you do that for!” barked Fox loudly.

“What do you think?” questioned Bino arrogantly, “A guy named King prancing about like he owns the place?”

King's shoulders began to shake, and his ears began to raise from their splayed position as his anger grew.

“I'm sick of your attitude!” growled Fox, “Not everyone who disagrees with you publicly is vying for your position!”

King almost didn't notice his tears beginning to fall, he was too busy crushing the present in his hands as his muzzle began to tint red with barely restrained anger.

“Oh you wanna say that to my face?” snapped Bino

“I am saying it to your face!” snapped back Fox irritated and angry.

King wasn't even focused on the situation happening right in front of him, instead he was more focused on struggling not to burst. His muzzle had turned completely red, his eyes were narrowed over tiny pupils, and his body was shacking like crazy.

“You're always saying it to my face, you're all like 'Bino we shouldn't pick on Peanut', but you go with me anyway!” exclaimed Bino as he argued.

Fox didn't get to finish his sentence, because King had finally reached the boiling point. His teeth which had been holding his mouth shut, finally opened and he threw back his head and howled out angrily.

“CENSORED!”

Bino and Fox felt their eyes widen and their pupils shrink, neither of them believing what they'd just heard come out of King's muzzle.

“I've had it up to here with you animals!” snarled King growling at everyone, “I can't stand your pettiness, your short sightedness, your inability to see the world past your noses!”

Bino winced and took a step back, but Fox was too shocked to move. The anger, rage, hate, resentment and embarrassment on King's face was eating at him. Yet he couldn't find anything to say, so instead he stood still to listen to King's rant.

“Every time I try and be a decent person you turn on me without a thought!” snarled King his voice practically a single growl, “I've had it!”

This time Fox knew he needed to speak, he needed to calm down King and prove that he hadn't turned on him. He didn't want to loose his new friend, especially when they'd just started to know each other better.

“Ki...”

“SHUT UP!” growled King

King spun around and began stalking towards the door, tears dripping down his muzzle as he crossed his arms and hugged himself. No one could miss the fact that King appeared to be shaking, or the pained look in the Corgi's eyes.

“I'm going home,” he whispered, “Fox, stop following me.”

/ / /

Grim's left eye twitched once, and then twice, and his gaze slowly turned towards Bino. Bino had finally made it back to his feet, and turned just in time to be faced with Grim's twitching eye. He blinked, and then sneered snottily at the wolf.

Bino immediately found himself slammed with the full force of Grim's presence, and swayed slightly as he stumbled backwards. His pupils dilating in fear as his eyes widened, he felt his body begin to shake and shiver in horror, and he knew that he was in trouble.

Grim slowly began to walk towards him, and Bino suddenly found himself standing in the middle of complete darkness. It was as if the room had disappeared, and he'd been left alone somewhere with a Great Predator.

The Darkness seemed to twist and writhe around Grim, cracking, shaking, and screaming of dangerous power with each step the wolf took. Bino took a few steps back, and opened his mouth to speak, stopping when he felt two twin black eyes pierce him as if seeing his very soul.

At that instant everything changed, the darkness behind Grim shifted. Bino watched horrified as it turned into a menacing white skull, its mouth open as if ready to consume him. Than suddenly it was all gone, and he was standing back in the Club Headquarters, the angry black wolf standing right in front of him.

“What are you looking at me like that dor....celch....”

Bino's attempt to speak and act cool was cut off, as Grim's paw wrapped around his throat. He was completely horrified as he was effortlessly lifted into the air, and forced to stare downward into Grim's eerie black eyes.

Members of the Club rushed forward to help Bino, only to stop as Grim turned to look towards him. None of them could take anymore steps, helpless as they stared into the wolfs deadly black eyes. Those that had gotten a good look at the wolf before, wondered if their fear was making their minds play tricks on them, because the wolf's eyes had been green.

“How dare you do that to King,” growled Grim, “I've killed others for less.”

Eyes widened all around them, at the ease this new wolf spoke about killing. His voice, his stance, everything pointed towards his words being truth. This wolf would kill them if they provoked him, and for once Bino felt true terror grip his heart.

“If I wasn't so worried about King,” Grim trailed off and snarled, “I'd tear off your collar and throw you to the pound!”

Grim loosened his grip, and Bino collapsed to the ground in an unmoving heap. Spinning around Grim began to stalk towards the door, pausing only to look at Fox, and motion for the grey dog to followed him.

Everyone watched as the door closed behind Grim and Fox, and slowly whispers began to spread around the room. The fear and terror everyone had felt disappearing, yet none of them feeling truly safe at the moment.

After a long silence Bino spoke, “I just wet myself...”

/ / / / /

_________________Detail makes the difference between boring and terrific writing. It's the difference between a pencil sketch and a lush oil painting. As a writer, words are your paint. Use all the colors. ~ Rhys Alexander

Sat Aug 20, 2011 11:36 pm

copper

Puppy Wrangler

Joined: Tue Sep 28, 2010 8:18 pmPosts: 6362Location: Florida

Re: Housepets: Grim's Awakening

Nice long update as always, hanku! I love where you are taking this.

Grim's presence is indeed powerful. I guess he must really care about king.

Huh, finally I've gotten around to reading your update, hanku. And you certainly don't disappoint!You know, I actually start to like Pete from the way you described him here, a more concerned and responsible being rather than the snobbish attitude he was usually portrayed with.

Grim's learning to control his powers and practising materialization is quite interesting to read, though I do wonder why the detrimental effects the materialized objects have on real things...

No matter how many times it was used in fanfics, I just can't get enough of King x Fox relationship and interactions! X3

And wow, I think I'd cower as well if I were in the same room as Grim at the club, that was some scary stuff he was doing there. Bino gets his just desserts once again is always a welcome sight!

I really like how you tie your story with the comic canon, and managed to stay original as well. Not many people can pull that successfully (Yeah, val, I'm looking at you X3). I also like the extreme details of the storytelling. I'll be looking forward for the next installment, hanku!

I was worried at first that my writing style wouldn't work with this sort of comic, but I really enjoy writing it, and wanted to post it and see if anyone else liked it.

I'm glad to see people are, it fills me with an inner joy that other people enjoy my writing. There's nothing better then writing and hearing people's thoughts on what you do, of course, those thoughts being nice is always fun too.

Anyways, I just want to say that this Chapter really worries me. I'm worried that I'm progressing a change too fast, but at the same time, I need to make the change to continue the story. I hope it works out okay, and that you all enjoy this chapter.

K, I'll stop talking now.

/ / /Previously

Everyone watched as the door closed behind Grim and Fox, and slowly whispers began to spread around the room. The fear and terror everyone had felt disappearing, yet none of them feeling truly safe at the moment.

After a long silence Bino spoke, “I just wet myself...”

/ / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / /Chapter 4 – Forming Resolve

Grim's furious pace didn't slow even a tiny bit as he walked, his paws clenched tightly in anger as he struggled, and failed, to control his rage. A snarl was easily visible on his muzzle, and he couldn't get himself to calm enough to relax it.

His anger and rage were so vast, that he was loosing control of his power. Where he could normally feel it just beneath the surface, he could now feel it literally flowing through him, like lava flowing down the side of a mountain.

His power was so active, that his seventh sense had flared powerfully to life, and he couldn't get it to fade into transparency like he normally did. But that wasn't even his worst problem, the major thing was the snow that melted under him with each step he took.

He was so close to completely loosing it, that the tinniest thing might set him off. It didn't help that he'd wanted to lash out at Bino, and by forcing himself not to he hadn't been able to unleash his rage. Instead his power continued to bubble and boil, and he didn't know if he'd be able to keep himself from harming someone.

It was a testament to his willpower though, that despite wanting to pound Bino into the ground, and maybe even rip him apart. He'd been able to hold himself, and all his instincts back, but it had been a close thing. He wanted revenge for how the dog had treated King, and it pained him that he'd forced himself to leave rather then take it.

Breathing out a frustrated sigh, Grim came to a complete stop. Under him the snow melted instantly, forming a large pool of water that soaked into his furry feet. He paid it no mind as he turned around, and faced a slightly fearful Fox, who despite everything, hadn't stopped following him.

Grim took this moment to observe Fox, wanting to get as much a reading as possible on the Fox as possible. He took in Fox's grey fur and light blue eyes, document his scent and ID Tag in his mind, and tried to figure out why Fox was so willing to help King.

“I brought you with me because you seem to care about King,” said Grim his voice still filled with a faint growl, “King needs all the friends he can get, his life hasn't been good, and he has few things worth living for at the moment.”

“You aren't a normal Pet are you?” questioned Fox, bravely containing his fear, “Are you a psychic like Tarot?”

Grim stared at Fox for a few moments, wondering what answer he should give. He didn't know if he could trust Fox, and at the same time he didn't know if he could make up a believable lie at such short notice.

“If I'd known what Bino was going to do, I'd have...” Fox trailed off angry at Bino, and disappointed in himself.

Grim nodded faintly, he understood where Fox was coming from. He could tell that Fox hadn't wanted King to be hurt, and had only wanted to try and introduce his new friend, to his older friends.

“We need to find King, before something happens to him,” said Grim before muttering quietly, “Or he does something stupid.”

Fox, even with his enhanced hearing, was barely able to catch Grim's muttering. He filled the odd sentence away in his mind, figuring it would be better to worry about it later. Right now they needed to find King, and he especially wanted to make sure his friend was okay.

Fox and Grim raised their muzzles into the air, and began sniffing deeply. Both of them searching for King's scent, or at least a high concentration of catnip to follow. It would irritate their noses to no end, but at least it would allow them to find King.

To their horror though, they had no such luck. Not only could neither of them detect King's scent, but they could both pick up multiple different trails of catnip. They had forgotten it was Christmas Eve, and the Dog's Club hadn't been the only Club or Group partying.

“Eight,” growled Grim, “I can detect eight different catnip trails.”

Fox nodded with a sigh, he was only able to find four, but he knew what Grim had meant by saying something. Neither of them would be able to find King like this, there were too many catnip trails to follow quickly, and without even a small amount of King's detectable, they would likely be here all night.

Neither of them stopped sniffing though.

It was a few minutes later Grim finally snapped angrily, “How am I supposed to find King when his scent is nowhere to be found, and catnip is blanketing almost the entire area.”

Grim had no idea what to do, he had told Pete he would find King, yet he was unable to do anything. He couldn't find King's scent, and he wasn't able to detect King within his seventh sense. He had even forced his seventh sense to expand, but hadn't been able to find any trace of King in the range he could expand to.

Beside Grim, Fox winced faintly, his thoughts running wildly with how this was all his fault. If only he'd been able to stop Bino, or at least kept King away from the rude dog in the first place. He knew from experience how stupid, rude and cruel Bino could be, and yet, he'd introduced his new friend to him anyways.

All he had wanted was for King to meet his friends, and to have the Corgi join with them and form new bonds. It had been impossible to miss how down King was feeling, the look on his muzzle, the shadows in his eyes, and of course the monologue he himself had walked in on.

He didn't know why King felt like that, but he had wanted to remove that look from King's muzzle. He had actually managed it for a while, everything had been going so well for his new friend. But then it had all failed, and King had ran from the party angry, embarrassed, and even cryin...crying, King had been crying!

“Crying!” Fox exclaimed as he faced Grim,” King was crying!”

Grim frowned at the remember of Bino having brought King to tears, he couldn't believe another animal would do that. But for the life of him he couldn't figure out how that was important to finding King, it wasn't like it could stop the horrible catnip scen...

Grim groaned and slapped his forehead, he couldn't believe he'd missed something so obvious. It was official, he was a complete idiot. Raising his muzzle once again, Grim began to breath in deeply. He focused on separating as many scents as possible, until he finally found what he was searching for, the salty scent of tears.

“This way,” Grim barked turning and rushing between two houses.

Fox immediately took off after the black wolf, pushing his legs to the limit as he ran faster then he'd ever run before. He didn't care how much he hurt later for straining his muscles, right now he only cared about finding and apologizing to King.

Between houses, through streets, across roads, down alleys, around a few corners, until they found themselves beside another row of houses. Grim had just taken a step forward when it happened, his ears twitching and allowing faint voices to run through his ears, just barely inside the range of his hearing.

Coming to a complete stop he listened closely, and was pleased to recognize one of the voices as belonging to King. He didn't recognize the other, but he couldn't hear any shouting, which at least meant nothing bad was happening.

“without beds or pillows, and it's freezing cold and there's no food.”

Fox had only just caught Grim stopping, and didn't understand until he noticed the voices as well. His own ears twitched, and he began to focus on the conversation. It only took him a moment to recognize the second voice, and another moment to turn around and begin walking away.

“Where are you going?” questioned Grim

Fox stopped.

“King's talking with Sasha,” Fox paused and listened for another second, “He isn't shouting, and I can barely smell any fresh tears, which means he stopped crying,” explained Fox before continuing, “I don't want to remind him of what happened with Bino, and I think I should just leave.”

Fox's muzzle was hanging lowered towards the ground, and his ears splayed back sadly. Grim understood that Fox felt guilty about what had happened, but he hadn't thought the feeling was quite this bad.

Fox obviously wanted to help King, and the two had seemingly become quick friends. Yet Fox was willing to leave and potentially loose King's friendship, just because he didn't want to make the young Corgi cry again.

Grim couldn't help but be impressed, it took an impressive dog to be willing to leave their own feelings aside like that. His respect for Fox increased greatly, and he swore to himself that he would make sure King and Fox remained friends. King needed all the friends he could get, and Fox had just made the top of Grim's list for that position.

“Your a brave dog Fox,” said Grim softly, “I'll make sure King knows you had nothing to do with Bino, and how upset you were that it happened.”

“Thanks,” whispered Fox.

Grim watched silently as Fox continued walking, his eyes following the grey dog until he disappeared from view. He decided right then that he'd tell Fox deserved to know some of the truth, and promised to visit the dog later to tell him what he could.

Turning Grim headed towards King's voice, taking the time to document the scent of this 'Sasha' at the same time. He figured it would be a good idea to get scent profiles of everyone he met, that way he'd be able to find everyone easier.

It was also make it easier to separate the hundreds of scents that made up the town, which would help him in the long run for sure.

Stepping out from behind the house, Grim immediately caught sight of King and Sasha. He was instantly able to make out that Sasha was a girl, and the moonlight illuminated things enough for him to get a good look at her.

Sasha had white and brown fur, pink eyes, and an equally pink collar. Hanging from her collar was her ID Tag, that was shaped like a heart. He could see her talking cheerfully to King, and he wondered how her seemingly bright personality was affecting King.

King wasn't really a cheerful dog, but than again, he didn't really have much to be cheerful about in the first place. Grim knew that King was in a difficult position right now, and that King was struggling to learn the lesson Pete was teaching him. But he knew that King was at least trying, and he supposed that was all that mattered.

Figuring he had nothing better to do, Grim scanned the surrounding area for a tree. Spotting on he silently made his way to it, and easily climbed, jumped and flipped to land on the highest branch without noise.

Leaning back against the trunk, he relaxed and listened to Sasha and King as they spoke to each other. He didn't know why, but he knew this night was important for King, that he was learning and discovering new things, and that if he interrupted it, King wouldn't learn what he needed to.

So remaining motionless, he relaxed and listened...

/ / / / /

King sat on the snowy ground, his butt slightly cold despite the fur that covered it. His arms were crossed to keep himself warm, the night air combined with the snow being too much for just his fur and scarf to protect him.

Faint traces of tears flowed down his muzzle, but he'd stopped crying a few minutes ago when he sat down with Sasha. He hadn't been planning on stopping, he'd wanted to wander around the town and try and figure out what he was supposed to do.

He'd really tried to understand Fox, and he had thought he was finally learning something. But than Bino had pulled that prank on him, and his opinions had once again been muddled. He was so angry, furious with trusting those animals, yet at the same time, he was embarrassed because he'd really trusted them.

He was lost, and all he'd wanted to do was sort out his thoughts. But Sasha had looked so sad and lonely, and he just couldn't find it in himself to leave her alone. Which was how he found himself sitting on the snow beside her, just listening to her talk.

“I really like my Dad,” said Sasha softly, “I know that he loves me, but sometimes...”

King nodded faintly, and tried to think of what to say. Sasha had been pouring her heart out to him, but so many things were still strange to him. Finally he decided on trying to be as reassuring as possible, he didn't want to make Sasha sadder than she already appeared to be.

“Maybe he just has a lot on his mind,” suggested King slightly uncomfortable.

King had no idea what to do or say, Sasha was pretty nice, but her life didn't seem to be going good either. Her 'Dad' was constantly disappointed with her, and she didn't feel like she was being loved. Yet she apparently loved him a lot, and King wasn't sure what he could do, or even say just to reassure her.

He was still upset about Bino and the incident at the club, but he also remembered how he'd felt playing with Fox. His mind was in turmoil, and Sasha talking about her 'Dad' was making him even more unsure of his thoughts.

Dad, that was an odd term for a Pet to use. He'd never know that they did that with their owners, calling them that like they were their parents. But according to Sasha is was very common, a sign of mutual love and respect between Pet and Human.

“I just...just want him to be happy,” said Sasha tears forming in her eyes, “But I'm just not good enough.”

“It sounds like you really love him,” said King, pausing before he suggested gently, “Maybe he dosen't realize how much you hurt, because he's too busy hurting at the same time?”

Sasha blinked a few times, and her tears dried up. She thought over what King had just said, and she wondered if that was right. Daddy did always seem to be sad and upset over something, maybe it wasn't for the reasons she thought.

She knew he loved her, and she knew she loved him. She was upset because she'd failed him, so maybe he thought that he'd failed her somehow. For the first time in weeks Sasha began to feel hope, and she smiled gratefully at King.

“You've given me a lot to think about,” she whispered.

Sasha suddenly let out a loud yawn, and King smiled softly. Sasha's eyes had been drooping the entire time she spoke, and it was obvious she was tired. He could see her shivering from the cold though, and knew she'd never be able to sleep like this.

His sharp eyes scanned over his surroundings, and he grinned when he spotted a pile of recycled newspaper. Sasha stared at him as he climbed to his feet, and her eyes followed him as he made his way over tot he recycle bin, and grabbed a pawful of papers.

King returned to beside Sasha, and unfolded a few of the papers. Keeping them connected in their layers, and forming a sort of blanket with them. It was something he'd seen on a survival show, using newspaper to conserve warmth.

Spreading the blanket around them, King suddenly found himself with an armful of Sasha. She wrapped around him, and he couldn't stop his paws from wrapping around her as they cuddled together. The blanket wrapped around them, their arms wrapped around each other, and their fur warming quickly as they got comfortable.

“Night King,” said Sasha softly.

“Goodnight, Sasha.”

Within seconds Sasha was asleep, wind blowing in and out of her muzzle. King did his best not to move, but couldn't find it in himself to try and fall asleep. He had a lot on his mind, and he'd always thought better at night.

His eyes looked up at the starry sky, and he began to wonder. He didn't know anymore, was being a Pet wrong, or had he truly been as ignorant as he appeared to be. Nothing was as set in stone as he'd believed, and as he thought about his day, he knew that he'd likely been wrong, so wrong that he had no idea how he came to his own conclusions.

Fox, Sasha, they were both so nice to him. Even Grim whom he'd just met, had been nice to him at the Vet before passing out. All of them appeared happy with their lives, Sasha loved being a Pet, and she loved her 'Dad'. Fox had fun, and his father cared about him a lot, that much was obvious with how angry he'd been when King had kidnapped Fox.

“Have I really been so wrong,” whispered King, “I don't know what to think anymore, what has Pete been trying to teach me.”

King's eyes closed for a second, and he contemplated his own personal experiences. As he looked at it from a completely blank perspective, he saw how wrong he appeared to have been. It amazed him how much his own beliefs had clouded what was, apparently, right in front of him.

Talking with Sasha had proved he wasn't the same person he'd thought he was, he'd understood her plight, err...mostly, and he'd offered advice and his thoughts. But they hadn't been the same things he would have offered, he'd actually answered how he assumed a Pet would, how he would have if he was truly King.

“I don't even know where to start,” sighed King, “How do I change?”

“Most changes don't happen in one magical night King,” chuckled Grim.

King's eyes snapped up, and tracked Grim as he dropped from the tree overhead. He blinked as Grim landed effortlessly on the ground, and couldn't help but stare. Had Grim been here the whole time, had he heard what he said, did he know what was going on?

“Changes don't happen in a month's time, nor do they end so cleanly as stories would have you believes,” said Grim softly, “But, 'The Journey of a Thousand Miles Begins With a Single Step'.”

“What are you talking about?” questioned King confused

Grim stared at King for a few minutes, and than dropped down to a knee and put his paw on King's shoulder. King stared into Grim's eyes, and he found himself awed by the emotions and feelings he could see so easily reflected.

“The farthest someone can take you on Your Journey is the door,” said Grim gently, “The decision to continue is always your own, and I think you've made that decision, haven't you King?”

King stared at Grim for a few moments, he wasn't sure, but it was almost like the black wolf knew what was going on. But that wasn't possible, Pete had told him that his status as once being human was something no one was allowed to know.

Grim seemed perfectly normal, and yet King couldn't help but feel that Grim knew exactly what was going on. That he was having difficulty with his choices, his opinions and thoughts, and that he no longer knew what was true.

“Do you know?” questioned King

“That you were once human,” said Grim shrugging softly, “I don't care about that.”

“How can you not care! I don't know what to do anymore, was I wrong before about Pets, I don't know what to think or do!” exclaimed King wildly, “I almost feel like I'm turning into the dog I look like, but I'm human!”

Grim stared at King softly, a small unreadable expression forming on his muzzle.

“It dosen't matter what you are, who you were, where your from, what the future holds, what you used to believe, or anything else,” said Grim his tone conveying a special wisdom, “The circumstances of our births and origins mean nothing, all the matters is what you decide to do right at this moment, with the life that you've been gifted.”

King didn't know what to say, everything that Grim said made sense. Yet at the same time none of it made sense, he didn't know who he was anymore. Was he Joel, PETA Member, a human who refused to look past his beliefs and had been forcefully transformed into a dog to suffer.

Or was he King, a young Corgi, who was making friends. Friends who liked him for being himself, where he didn't need to hide himself just to make others like him. As King he was finally happy, and was even learning to hope again.

“I want...want...” King paused and his eyes steeled with resolve as he looked straight at Grim, “I want to walk through the door, I want to try and change, I want to learn what it truly means to be a Pet.”

King paused for a moment, raising his paws and looking at them. He knew this was what he wanted, yet at the same time, he felt fear for what he was acknowledging. Had being a dog, for only a single day, truly changed him so much.

He knew that it had, but at the same time it hadn't. His opinions were still uncertain, and he wasn't sure if he'd be able to do this. But at the same time this experience had been nothing like he'd thought. His day had started off horrible, and he'd thought nothing would be able to convince him being a Pet had meaning.

Then he'd met Fox, and he learned quickly his thoughts had been wrong.

Even Bino had helped, showing him that Pets weren't just brainwashed slaves, and that they could act however they wanted. He was learning so much, so many things he never thought he would experience as something he considered only an animal.

Fox, Sasha, Grim, Pete, Bino, all of them had changed him. He wasn't the same person he'd thought he was, he wasn't as trapped as he'd forced himself to believe. He knew that today had begun to alter and change everything, and tonight had shown him just what he needed to do, if he wanted to continue that change.

“Tell me Joel,” said Grim softly, “What you really want.”

King stared at his paws for a few more seconds, and than down at the collar hanging around his neck as he contemplated the last of his thoughts. He knew exactly what he wanted, and he knew that he wanted to change.

Maybe he wouldn't be able to do it right away, and maybe he still had his doubts, but he was willing to try at least. It was just as Grim has said, the journey was his own, and he knew it would be one of the most difficult things he'd ever experienced.

Today and Tonight had only been the beginning, just the beginning of the lessons he would learn, the friends he would make and the things about himself he would discover.

His mind hadn't truly changed yet, but he had begun to walk his way through that door. He would stay as a dog, learn what it meant to be a true Pet, and in time he might truly understand what it meant to be a Pet and not just an animal.

King looked into Grim's eyes, smiling as he said, “I don't know a Joel,” his tone echoing resolutely as he continued, “My name is King.”

/ / / / /

Across town Pete's eyes snapped open, glowing eerily as a large grin spread across his beak. King had accepted the journey he'd prepared for him, accepted the chance to change his life, and himself for the better.

That was what he'd hoped when he transformed King, and so-far things seemed to be working well. King had learned many lessons already, formed bonds with others who would help him on his way to becoming the pers...dog he was meant to be.

He knew that King hadn't truly changed yet, but starting down the path was just as good as accomplishing it. King would face many difficult trials, and Pete knew that the corgi's resolve to truly understand Pets would be truly tested.

He supposed in congratulations he could let King start eating some normal food again, it would show the Corgi he wasn't as cruel as he appeared. Pete knew he'd been a little harsh in the beginning, but he had felt that King deserved it.

Trying to kidnap Fox, honestly what had PETA been thinking...

“It looks like everything is going to work out,” said Pete happily.

He knew that many of the other superbeings considered him a jerk, and it was true at times he was. But he didn't have anything against anyone, and he wasn't evil. He would never allow himself to become evil, he'd seen what it did to someone just like all the others had.

He refused to become like Xeyon, and he knew that despite the bad things he did, that he would never allow himself to be corrupted like Xeyon had. Sure he wasn't such a goody-two-shoes like everyone else, but he would never do what Xeyon had done.

“I'm glad to see your resolve is set, 'Pete',” echoed a raspy voice.

Pete spun his massive form around, and his pupils dilated in complete and utter horror. Floating in the air in front of him was a shadowy silhouette, black smoke wrapped around it, and two glowing black eyes the only thing he could make out.

“Apocalypse,” whispered Pete.

This wasn't possible, Apocalypse had sealed himself away many hundreds of years ago, it had been the only way to protect everyone. For Apocalypse to be free, meant that danger was coming, danger that could threaten the worl...no the universe.

“Do not fear 'Pete',” Apocalypse let out a raspy chuckle, “I'm not truly free, this is only a mental projection of myself.”

Pete let out a massive sigh of relief, that was better then he'd hoped for. As long as Apocalypse was still sealed away, it meant there could be centuries before the danger even became a tiny speak on the horizon.

Apocalypse was one of the strongest of them, and when sealed away it wasn't the same as when any of them were sealed away. Apocalypse remained aware of the world, and just slept to pass the time until he was released again. Being awake just meant Apocalypse had seen something, or had grown bored and wanted to talk.

“So what do you need?” questioned Pete

“I've seen what you've started with King,” said Apocalypse a faint smile visible in his tone, “I'm pleased with you Pete, that you've been able to change, and are actually helping like a superbeing is meant to.”

“I witnessed Xeyon,” whispered Pete, “I saw what I could become, and was horrified.”

Apocalypse nodded, “I do not think you need to fear that,” he said his eyes turning into upside down U's, “I believe in you, just as I always have.”

Pete watched as Apocalypse's silhouette vanished, and he let out a sigh of relief. Though it was a honor to be spoken to by Apocalypse, one of the most powerful and respected of them all, it was still quite horrifying.

Apocalypse was a wise, caring elder. He had taught most of them everything they knew, and was the reason many of them had been chosen for their power. Because of that he was something of a father to them all, and all of them wanted nothing more than to make him proud.

Last time he'd spoken with Apocalypse, he'd warned him of the path he was following. He had told him that it was dangerous, and that he would loose himself if he wasn't careful. It was around that time Xeyon had turned on them, and Pete had understood what his father figure meant.

Still, even though he was trying his best to turn over a new leaf. None of the other superbeings really trusted him, many of them looking at him like he might snap or betray them at any moment. It made him sad, yet he knew he'd brought it on himself.

“I have a lot to make up for,” said Pete, “Grim and King will be my first steps.”

Pete's eyes glowed, his resolve plain to see.

/ / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / /

_________________Detail makes the difference between boring and terrific writing. It's the difference between a pencil sketch and a lush oil painting. As a writer, words are your paint. Use all the colors. ~ Rhys Alexander

That was awesome! i love how grim took petes place in that conversation, and how king really dug into his whole situation like that...the catnip and tears thing was clever, adds suspense to the story, and that cliffhanger at the end with pete, awesome, i wanna know what exactly his so called, "Resolve" is, *claps*great job, great job(forgive if someof this seems, strange...not that good at writing reviews*chuckles*)

_________________Peanut has a Facebook!!!It takes a REAL genius to do something truely stupid!-MEWanna play a game with me on steam? PM me

How very... introspective of you, Hanku. Way to get into the minds of your characters.

Also nice to hear a little about the superbeings. They are so darn mysterious.

Well, Grim will be the talk of the neighborhood soon, huh? Everyone likes a good story about Bino being humiliated!

Nice update. Can't wait for the next one.

_________________My charactersEverybody has a story to tell. What's yours?

Fri Aug 26, 2011 12:07 am

Hanku

Joined: Sat Jul 30, 2011 6:01 amPosts: 9Location: Abbotsford, B.C.

Re: Housepets: Grim's Awakening

/ / /Previously

“Tell me Joel,” said Grim softly, “What you really want.” ...King looked into Grim's eyes, smiling as he said, “I don't know a Joel,” his tone echoing resolutely as he continued, “My name is King.”...“I've seen what you've started with King,” said Apocalypse a faint smile visible in his tone, “I'm pleased with you Pete, that you've been able to change, and are actually helping like a superbeing is meant to.”

“I witnessed Xeyon,” whispered Pete, “I saw what I could become, and was horrified.”...“I have a lot to make up for,” said Pete, “Grim and King will be my first steps.”

Pete's eyes glowed, his resolve plain to see.

/ / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / /Chapter 5 – Smiles

Grim couldn't look away from King, the resolve in the corgi's eyes seemed to pound against him. He could honestly say that he was only slightly surprised by King's choice, he'd already suspected that would be the former humans answer.

He was happy King had chosen this path, despite the difficulties it would bring. For without a doubt this was a difficult path, one where King would discover things about himself that would change him forever, and the question was...

Would the change be good?

“I'm glad you've made your choice King,” he said smiling before continuing softly and seriously, “Never let anyone force you away from it.”

King seemed to understand the seriousness of his words, for the corgi nodded with a resolute stare that warmed Grim's heart. He was happy that King seemed to understand how important his decision was, and happy that King was so full of resolve.

Patting King gently on the shoulder, Grim turned and began to walk away. He was at ease once again, he'd calmed down, and his power had returned to the calm state he now knew he preferred it in. His power was a constant struggle to contain, and it was like he could never relax because of it. Right now though, well he was calm, it was much easier to control.

Behind him he noticed and sensed King begin to follow him, and he slowed slightly to allow the short corgi to catch up with him. He'd promised Pete to look for King after all, so he might as well go all the way and walk home together with King.

It took King only a moment to catch up, and together they began walking back towards Pete's house. Neither of them really considered it home yet, but it was slowly gaining that name in Grim's mind at least.

Grim didn't even need them to stop for directions, it was impossible not to know where the house was. Pete was inside it after all, the the Gryphon excluded a presence that was ridiculously easy to hone in on, and follow.

Suddenly Grim's senses flared, and he caught Fox's presence nearby. It was at this moment he finally noticed something important, one, it was no longer dark out, and two, he could sense multiple other presences wandering the streets.

Blinking he looked up at the bright blue sky, he was shocked to see the sun hanging low in the air. He almost couldn't believe it, that so much time had passed without him noticing. But apparently he'd been talking with King almost the entire night, and time had passed quicker then he'd thought possible.

“Hey King,” said Grim starting the conversation simply, “Can I ask you something?”

“Sure,” said King surprised.

Grim wondered how he should go about doing this, he'd told Fox he would make sure King knew how he felt. But at the same time, if King was still mad about what happened, then he might have put all the blame on Fox for inviting him in the first place.

Yet it needed to be said anyways, because staying mad just wasn't good for anyone. It took him only a moment to decide after that, and with a deep breath he stopped, and turned to face King.

“I know what happened with Bino,” he began, sighing when King's face dissolved into anger, “I want to know if you hold it against Fox?”

The change in King was like night and day, his anger vanished as if never there, and the young corgi's entire form stiffened. He found himself being pierced by King's eyes, which were wide with both shock and anger.

Grim knew immediately that King was horrified for being asked that, now the only question was, how come? He hoped it was because King already considered Fox his friend, and when King spoke, his words only reinforced that hope.

“Why would you even ask that! Fox has been nothing but nice to me!” exclaimed King shocked and angry, “Of course I don't hold what that Idiot Bino did against him, Fox is my FRIEND!”

Grim couldn't look away from King, the corgi's eyes were locked with his, and it felt like he was starring into an inferno. Grim felt reassured by King's response, and wondered just how King and Fox had become friends so fast.

But at the same time, he wondered why he couldn't interpret the emotions in King's eyes. He'd always thought he was good at it, but he just couldn't identify that feeling in King's eyes. But the feverish way King swore his friendship with King pleased him, that was impossible to misinterpret.

“I'm glad,” said Grim softly.

King's anger dissolved, and he blink a few times before blurting out, “What!?”

Grim quickly recalled to himself how Fox had looked and acted last night, it had been the look of a dog who thought they'd lost a good friend. Fox had acted with honor that Grim hadn't seen before, to leave just because he thought King might be hurt by his presence.

He was glad that King hadn't taken it the wrong way, and glad that King was still Fox's friend. He didn't know why, but he knew those two would be important for each other, every part of his being seem to scream that at him.

“Fox was worried you'd be upset to see him again because of Bino,” explained Grim as he turned and looked down a seemingly empty house-side, “I'm glad because he's about to stumble onto you.”

King blinked, “Err, don't you mean onto us?”

Grim smirked at King, and stepped backwards into the shadows of the nearby building. He knew that King was still new to everything happening, but at the same time, he wasn't the right person King needed at the moment.

Right now King needed someone he could bond with and trust, and Grim knew that Fox was just that person. Also, he didn't really want to be here during this conversation, it was a private moment between the two of them, one that he had no right to interfere in.

Tapping carefully into his vast well of power, Grim felt all his senses and his entire body strength and increase as energy flowed through him. He began to gather that energy, to perform something he'd only seen and felt Pete do once.

He wasn't sure he'd be able to perform the exact same thing, but his powers appeared to be similar to Pete's at least. Hopefully that meant he should be able to perform Pete's Astral Gate, even if it didn't turn out the same way.

“See you later King,” chuckled Grim.

Grim unleashed his power, and watched in silent awe as it performed exactly as he'd wished. Only, not in the way he'd thought it would be accomplished. His shadow raised from the ground, forming a small twister of black energy around him.

A second later it seemed to expand and thicken, forming a small dome that covered just inches away from him. The next second it happened, the dome pushed down against him, and he sunk down into the ground like a shadow.

He couldn't see or hear anything, but a minute later he felt that change. He felt a pulling sensation, and the next thing he noticed the dome of shadows was unwrapping into a twister. Which then slowly dropped back down to the ground, until seconds later everything looked perfectly normal.

Smiling Grim cheered at his success, he'd brought himself to the snowy clearing he'd first tracked King to. It was away from most people, and therefore was a good place to perform an action that you didn't want anyone witnessing.

Smirking he spun around, and stopped, his muzzle dropping open. This just wasn't possible, there was no way his luck could be this bad. But he knew it was, standing in front of him, their muzzle open, and large bunny ears splayed back.

Was Zach, and he'd obviously just seen everything...

/ / / / /

King stared with a dumfounded look at where Grim had just been, his muzzle was hanging open, and his eyebrows twitching slightly. He'd known that Grim wasn't normal, that much had been obvious from just hanging around the black wolf.

But he hadn't expected Grim to actually use any power, or at least, not in front of him for such a pointless reason. Grim had used his power to basically run away, and he found himself wanting to punch the wolf in the muzzle.

“HHHHHH”

King's ears twitched at the sound of someone sucking in air rapidly, and turning around to look towards the source, he spotted Fox. He blinked, and then noticed that Fox had already turned and was walking quickly away.

He frowned and felt hurt, but it disappeared the next second when he remembered what Grim had only just told him. Immediately he knew that Grim had been telling the truth, and Fox obviously thought he wouldn't like him anymore.

He refused to allow that!

His first thought was to run forward and force Fox to talk to him, he would act like a reasonable grown-up, stating all the facts, and then it would be fixed. But he quickly crushed that idea, it was something Joel would have done, and he wasn't Joel anymore.

He was King now, a Pet just like Fox. He tried to think of how a Pet would apologize, but his mind was completely blank. He had no idea how Pets really interacted, because he'd never bothered to learn. So far all the experience he had was pranking another Pet with catnip, or offering to sniff another Pets butt to know each other better.

Apologies weren't in that little bit of experience he had, which meant he was pretty clueless.

Suddenly he noticed Fox had almost disappeared from sight, and he quickly shouted out to catch his attention, “Fox!”

King quickly did the only thing he could think of, and as Fox turned towards him, he flung himself through the air. With a glomp worthy of a very young pup, he tackled Fox, pushing him to the ground and clutching onto him as he hugged him tightly.

“I'm sorry I yelled!” exclaimed King quickly.

Fox blinked once, and then twice. He was so shocked that for a moment he didn't speak, and King was worried that he'd done something really wrong. But the next second Fox's arms wrapped around him, and he was hugged back tightly.

“King,” whispered Fox, “It's my fault, I should have realized, I should have done something.”

King sniffled slightly as he heard the sincerity in Fox's voice, it was touching and for some reason he felt Fox's voice pull at his heartstrings. With a rising of instincts he hadn't even known he had, King's head moved to rest between Fox's head and shoulder.

“It's not your fault, I overreacted,” reassured King.

Fox blinked at King's act, and found himself deeply touched. Nuzzling against someone's neck like that was something only the closest of friends did, for King to do that already, meant that King trusted him more then he'd thought possible.

Foxed pulled King and himself up into a sitting position, and still King's head didn't move. He blinked, and smiled softly as he found himself returning the gesture. His own head lowering to tuck between King's head and shoulder, as he nuzzled into King's neck with his muzzle.

It was then he realized they were still on the ground, and blushing he pulled them both to their feet. Neither of them moved their heads though, continuing to hug and nuzzle with each others necks. With the snowy ground below, Fox realized just how cold King was.

The young corgi's fur was almost icy in feeling, and he couldn't stop the shocked gasp that escaped from his muzzle.

“You're so cold!”

Before King had a chance to say anything, he found himself wrapped in Fox's jacket. He didn't even realize what he was doing as he breathed in deeply, inhaling Fox's scent and memorizing it with incredible speed subconsciously.

“What about you?” questioned King worried, “You'll get cold now.”

Fox chuckled and said, “My fur is a lot thicker then yours,” he grabbed King's paw, “I'll keep warmer longer, see feel this,” he pulled King's paw through his fur to empathize his point.

When Fox let go of his paw, King pulled it back slowly with a blush all over his muzzle. It was a good thing he was a dog now, or else his entire face would have been redder then the sun. As it was he was sure Fox could see his blush, but at the moment he couldn't bring himself to care.

His entire body now felt like it was on fire, like he'd stepped out of the snow and into the sun. There was a strange tingling he didn't recognize in his paw, and for some reason he couldn't bring himself to look into Fox's eyes.

He has no idea what to say, but the situation felt awkward, and he quickly spoke the first thing that came to his mind.

It took King only a moment to realize what he'd said, and his blush increased. Fox didn't even notice though, he was too busy blinking and struggling to control his own raging blush. He'd been complemented on his fur before, but for some reason, King saying it made him feel better then ever before.

“I um, could help you with that if you want,” said Fox softly.

King whipped his head up, and looked into Fox's eyes. His blush faded away, but the odd tingling in his paw, and warmth inside of him only increased. But he pushed them to the side as he thought about Fox's offer, it would be nice to have his new friend helping him, heaven knew he would need lots of it.

“I'd like that,” said King equally softly.

Fox smiled, and King felt the whole area brighten. Suddenly his thoughts returned to their proper rotation, and King found himself wondering a number of things. He knew Fox would be able to help him with at least a few of them, and opened his mouth to ask his first question.

“What happened to Bino anyways?” questioned King

“Oh,” Fox blinked, “I punched him a good one, and I think Grim almost scared him to death,” Fox chuckled lightly and whispered out, “Bino even wet himself.”

King blinked, and then laughed loudly for a few minutes. His canine lungs giving his laugh a rumbling quality, one that he found impressive and interesting. He realized right then that he knew almost nothing about his new body, and promised himself to ask Pe...Grim some questions.

“So I've met you and Bino, but I haven't really met anyone else,” said King working up his courage, “Do you think you could introduce me to the town?”

Fox blinked, he hadn't even thought of that. King had just moved here, he knew that much. He hadn't even considered that King might not know anyone yet, and he hadn't thought to make introductions to his friends at the club.

“Sure,” said Fox brightly, “Should we tell your Dad first?”

It was impossible to miss King's wince.

“Pete's not my Dad,” said King, “I prefer to think of him as an Owner, we just aren't that close.”

Fox blinked a few times, he couldn't imagine that for himself. But at the same time he didn't really know much about King, aside from the small number of things he'd deduced from King's actions, reactions and accidental words.

“Sure no problem,” said Fox, “Should we tell him though?”

King thought about it for a few seconds, on one hand, Pete was definitely responsible for him at the moment. But on the other hand, he really didn't trust Pete, and wasn't sure he wanted to be around him unless absolutely necessary.

He could likely get away with not going to Pete's house for a while, and Grim might have even told Pete what was going on. But when he thought about it, he really didn't want to take chances, and get Pete mad at him.

Who knew what the Gryphon would do to him?

“I haven't been home since yesterday morning, so it's probably a good idea,” said King grudgingly.

Fox nodded, and they turned and headed towards the street. King found himself fall into step beside Fox, both of them talking quietly as they walked. Neither of them breached any important topics, and they mostly talked about the town and surrounding areas.

Fox making sure to tell King anything super important he could think of, that most residents just took for granted. It was a testament to the town though, that he couldn't think of anything dangerous to warn King about.

Neither of them noticed as their paws wrapped around each others, and their tails began to sway happily. Both of them smiling brightly, as they made their way down the street. They were so lost in their conversation and feelings, that they both missed it.

A pair of angry eyes watching their every movement, and an angry whisper.

“I hate them...I hate...I hate GAYS...”

/ / / / /

Grim had absolutely no idea what to do, Zach was starring at him in fear, which seemed to be causing him some sort of odd pain. His power was begging to be used again, and seemed to be forcing itself through him to try and be unleashed. His senses were even flaring, seemingly detecting something and trying to warn him.

Too many things were happening at once, and Grim quickly tried to gain control of the situation. Using his immense willpower he forced his senses shut, slammed his power back down and within his control, and stepped away from Zach as he help his paws in the air non-threateningly.

“I can't seem to think of what to say,” mumbled Grim.

“I...you just...what just...how did...” Zach seemed to be equally lost for words.

Grim tried to think of some lie to tell, but for the life of him he couldn't think of anything to say. It was like his mind had suddenly gone blank in Zach's presence, all the lies he'd constructed after having this problem with Fox, they were all gone.

“Zach...I...um...I um,” Grim stepped towards Zach.

He was trying to think of something, but his mind once again blanked as he witnessed something that felt like he was being stabbed. Zach had stumbled backwards as he approached, falling to the ground and scurrying backwards.

The fear in the rabbit's eyes make Grim feel like he was surrounded by ice, and that he'd just fallen into water and was now drowning. He had no more time to experience the sensations as it happened, his mind screamed out as pain cut through it like a knife.

Grim stumbled, and he collapsed to his knees as he was overcome by memory...

/ / / / /Flashback

Grim walked purposefully through the village, his eyes glowed a pitch emotionless black, and his fur spiked ferally like a nightmare. Draped around him, his shadowy trenchcloak fluttered eerily in the flame heated wind.

Though the flames of the burning village licked at him, he felt none of their burn, his fur didn't even feel hot. He was a creation of power, and his Master had made sure such a primitive element would be useless against his own vast power.

Grim's senses flared, and sighing he leaned backwards as a clawed hand cut through the air where he'd just been standing. He didn't even turn and look as he slashed out with his own claw, cutting through his attacker and causing him to crumple lifeless to the ground.

“Pitiful,” snarled Grim.

Grim made his way through a wall of flames, and into the village square. His puppets surrounded the remaining villagers, who were huddled together in fear from both his puppets, the flames, and him of course.

“I will offer you all one chance,” growled Grim, his voice echoing over the roaring flames, “Join my Master, or die...”

The villagers stared at him, and Grim could see that they planned to refuse. Sighing he didn't even need his senses to warn him for what came next, he simply raised his paw and caught the sharp blade of a knife in between two fingers.

The large male bear stared in fear, and Grim smirked darkly, his fingers twitching and snapping the weak excuse of a knife in two. The bear stumbled back, and Grim put a pleasant reassuring look on his muzzle, pulling it on like one would a mask.

“You have nothing to fear from me,” said Grim putting his hand on the male's trembling shoulder.

The bear stared at him for a few minutes, and Grim simply stood there without moving or making a threatening motion. Finally the large male bear relaxed, and in that moment Grim struck. His power sunk into the bear's body, and the bear began to scream in pain and agony.

Grim let go, and the bear crumpled to the ground in horrifying pain. Grim smirked and cackled darkly, and then a second later stepped past the smoking bones at his feet. Acting as if the act of decaying another being into nothing but bones was an everyday experience, which the villagers realized, it could actually have been.

“This villager chose your fate for you,” smirked Grim, “You won't die, and you won't be slaves, but you will all still serve my Master.”

The villagers whom had looked scared, now looked relieved. They wouldn't die, they would be able to live even if it was in some form of eternal service. They were horrified by what had happened to their friend/neighbor, but they wanted to live and that was all there was too it.

Grim watched with a dark smirk as the villagers relaxed, they all believed exactly what he had led them to believe. Now it was time to make them regret not accepting his earlier offer, and he knew they would regret.

“My Master will make sure you all serve a purpose,” said Grim smirking, “WITH YOUR SOULS!”

The villager's screamed, but Grim's echoing laughter still towered over it all...

End Flashback/ / / / /

Grim's eyes snapped open in horror, his mind screaming at him, his heartbeat pounding in his ears, and his breathing heavy and deep. He couldn't believe what he'd just witnessed, it just wasn't possible, he'd never have done something like that.

But the truth was, Grim had no idea if he would do that or not. He only knew a small number of things about his past, and the things he knew were so random that it was almost as bad as knowing nothing at all.

Grim felt his heart pound painfully, and unable to stop himself he threw his head back, and then howled loudly. His howl echoed through the snowy clearing, flowing into the town and causing Pets of all species to turn towards it's source.

The howl was a loud heart-wrenching cry, a cry that mimicked the unbelievable pain Grim felt inside his heart. Of those that hear it all had a small number of varying reactions, most broke down into tears, some remembered the saddest moments of their lives, and some lost all their happy thoughts.

Unaware of what was happening in the nearby town, Grim forced himself back to his feet, swaying slightly as he struggled to keep his balance. He was just so horrified, horrified that everything he thought he'd known was wrong, and revolted with what he'd done.

Grim's eyes drifted towards his paws as he stumbled forward, these weren't the paws of a slightly anti-social wolf. These were the paws of a murder, paws drenched in the blood of those he'd killed in the past.

He wasn't someone good, he didn't protect people, he had been a killer. His power decayed and destroyed because it was a weapon, something he used to kill those that had stood against him. He wasn't a Pet, he wasn't even a Feral, he was...he was a monster.

Clenching his paws shut, Grim struggled to try and calm himself. But it was no use, his mind was running a mile a minute, images from that memory slamming into him, forcing him to relive his other memories, now from the perspective of a monster.

Grim didn't even notice as the snow under him melted, shadowy energy rising from the ground and beginning to circle around him. Ripping the ground apart, even as it decayed and turned to dust in the air, before being blown away by the wind.

'I'm...'

Grim's body shuddered as he walked forward, making his way out of the clearing. He made his way blindly away from the town and towards the forest, he needed to get away, to protect everyone from the monster he now knew he was.

Something bad would happen if he stayed, he might regain his memories and kill everyone. But even as he thought about that, he felt his power bubbling under his skin, flowing through him with a burning intensity.

He knew that at this point he was just as much a danger right now, then he would be if he regained his memories. He could feel his power slipping from his control, and he had no idea what the consequences of his power being unleashed would be.

Already he could feel it burning through his skin, cutting him from the inside out as it even managed to burn through his fur.

'I'm...a...'

Grim stumbled forward, and slammed into a tree in the middle of his path. The tree sizzled from his contact, and began to decay and dissolve even as he pushed himself off it. He payed it no mind though, his thoughts and attention focused on completely different things.

He was so lost, that he didn't even know where he was going. He just let his feet carry him forward, an unnatural instinct stopping him from falling over, and his barely working willpower keeping him from loosing the little grasp of his power he had left.

'I'm a...mon...mons...'

Grim swayed and tripped, stumbling forward and out into another clearing. A clearing that he recognized almost instantly, it was this clearing where he'd first met Zach. This clearing, so close to where he'd awakened back into the world.

Maybe it would have been better, if he'd never awakened...

The ground below him rippled as power flowed through it, ripping it open and reveling a faint black glow from beneath the surface. Grim barely noticed though, his thoughts to wild, and his body in far too much pain to focus on anything.

Grim felt his legs begin to tremble, and within seconds he'd collapsed to his knees. Once again he found himself howling, his painful cry echoing through the forest, and causing the Ferals and other Creatures to experience the same sensations as the Pets had.

Grim felt his body scream out in pain, and his control slipped another inch. He couldn't bring himself to try and grab hold of it, there was no point in him doing so. And so deadly power pushed through his body, opening more wounds, burning away more fur, and causing him to begin bleeding from his various wounds.

No one was around to witness it though, yet Grim honestly couldn't care. His worst enemy could have seen him right now, and he wouldn't even lift a finger to make them turn away. It was the best thing for him, to die right here, to let himself be destroyed by his own power.

No one was around, and if he willing let his power go, there was a good chance it would destroy him. He would never regain his memories, and he'd never be able to hurt anyone ever again. He would fade away in this forest, and never threaten the peace of this wonderful town.

'I'm a Monster!'

A small smile stretched across Grim's muzzle, and he slowly unclenched his paws, allowing himself to relax. He felt his power rippling through him, beginning to spill from his fingers, and push out of his body with his willpower barely able to contain it.

“This is for the best,” whispered Grim to himself.

Grim let go of his restraints, no longer even attempting to hold back his power. Leaning back he looked up towards the sky, letting his head fall backwards. His eyes immediately burst open in horror, standing at the edge of the clearing and looking towards him was Zach.

“RUN ZACH!” hollered Grim horrified.

He knew that even at that distance Zach was doomed, Grim's power was going to destroy this clearing, and likely a large portion of the forest past it as well. He didn't even hesitate as he reached out for his power, but it was far too late.

His power had already completely left his control, flowing from him like a dam that had broken. The ground around him rippled and thousands of cracks and fissures opened, black flame-like energy rising and steaming from them, looking like the black fires of hell.

The energy that circled around him, had transformed into a storm of deadly power. Decaying and destroying everything it touched, nothing would be able to approach it and survive, and only Grim's immunity allowed him to survive inside of it.

Grim felt no pain or damage, no decay or destruction. To him it was like being caressed by a warm wind, his power manifesting outside of him felt peaceful and wonderful. No pain or struggle to survive, and yet he knew that was all he should have been feeling.

His body was ripped and torn, cuts covered his skin, his fur was either burned away or covered in blood, and he looked like a zombie raised from the dead. Yet he felt no pain, no struggle to contain his endless power.

For a moment he wondered, if this was how other people felt. No power constantly struggling to be released, no mental strain as he focused on remaining calm and contained. It felt good, and he wished that he could always feel like this.

He'd always struggled with his power, but right at this moment, so near death. He felt no struggle, no strain, and he felt totally at peace. He wanted this moment to last forever, for this to be the last thing he experienced on earth.

But Zach was in danger.

Grim forced his body to move, forced himself to push aside the peace and calm, and embrace the pain and agony he should be feeling. He forced himself to stand, to push himself straight even with his wound covered legs.

Howling Grim reached out with all his willpower, pushing through the now almost unbearable pain, and grabbing at the power still flowing from him. But it was like trying to catch wind, it simply slipped from his hands and back inside of him.

He refused to stop though, he refused to allow Zach to be even injured when it was He who deserved to die. His willpower was strengthened by his resolve to protect Zach, and letting out another loud howl, he managed to grab hold of his power for the fraction of a second.

That was all it took.

In that instant he grabbed hold and subdued his power, forcing it back under his completely control. The pain was immense, it felt like his entire body was burning inside, but he wouldn't allow something like pain to stop him. He would do this!

Reclaiming the power that had leaked from his body, and forcing the power flowing from the earth to stop as well. He knew that it wouldn't last though, the pain was too much, and his body was failing. He needed to protect Zach, and stop anything bad from happening because of his power.

Controlling the power that had leaked from the earth, and the massive amounts of energy he couldn't return to his body, he created a dome. A massive dome of black energy that surrounded him, sealing him within it and creating an unbreakable barrier, that was quickly reinforced with a constant stream of his inner power.

A barrier that would stop anything from passing or entering it, nothing would get out beyond it's boundaries. Zach would be protected, and even the forest would be saved from the power of his incredible energy.

Focusing he made the barrier opaque on the outside, stopping Zach from seeing inside, but still allowing him to look out through it. He would protect Zach from what was happening to him, it wasn't something he wanted Zach's young eyes to witness.

His remaining fur disintegrated from the powerful force, leaving him as naked as a human...

His skin split open, forming faint cuts and scars that began to bleed.

His bones became brittle before shattering, yet still he remained standing...

Grim refused to let go of the power inside of himself, even as it burned him from the inside out. Even as his lungs clogged and he stopped breathing, even as his heart strained to continue beating and keep him alive.

He still refused to let go.

Looking out through the barrier, Grim smiled softly as his power struggled to be contained. He was happy that this would be how it ended at least, he doubted it would make up for the life he'd obviously led before, but protecting someone, that's how he wanted to go.

Grim reinforced the powerful barrier, even as his heartbeat slowed. The smile never left his face as he stared out at Zach, happy that the young rabbit was the last person he'd see. The first person he'd met, would also be the last.

It was ironic somehow.

Grim's body began to ripple, and black light began to pour from his various wounds, even flowing from his mouth and eyes. His blood burned and turned black, the ground under him cracked and exploded upwards, and black light filled the dome completely.

Grim's heart stopped.

Massive cracks formed along the dome, black light flowing from an already black done. Zach watched in horror and awe as the dome was ripped apart, a massive explosion of thick black energy cutting through the air and earth in all directions.

Smoke, dust and dirt filled the air, blocking all attempts at seeing what was happening. But it quickly began to clear away, as the wind flowed freely through the large and unblocked clearing.

Zach found himself running forward, fear had filled his heart. He knew this was his fault, if only he hadn't reacted so bad to Grim's strange appearance. It had scared him so much, that he hadn't even though of how he reacted.

But something with how he had reacted had hurt Grim, and it had led to this. Zach rushed to the edge of the rapidly clearing dust cloud, and his muzzle dropped open as he stared in shock at the massive crater in front of him.

It was massive, deeper and wider then anything he'd seen in books or on the television. But somehow it wasn't that which truly shocked it, it was the body laying unmoving at the bottom of the crater. He didn't understand how it was possible, but Zach knew that he wasn't imagining it.

At the bottom of the crater was Grim's body, looking perfect. No wounds, no blood, nothing that showed the wold had just been in an explosion. But he couldn't hear or see Grim breathing, and knew that without a doubt Grim was dead.

For some reason though Zach couldn't cry, because Grim was smiling...

_________________Detail makes the difference between boring and terrific writing. It's the difference between a pencil sketch and a lush oil painting. As a writer, words are your paint. Use all the colors. ~ Rhys Alexander

Last edited by Hanku on Sun Aug 28, 2011 1:58 am, edited 3 times in total.

....WOW, and i thought that only I would kill off main characters in awesome ways...that was SWEET, but not that hard to tell bino was the one who made the gay insult about king and fox, just cause of his hatred toward him

_________________Peanut has a Facebook!!!It takes a REAL genius to do something truely stupid!-MEWanna play a game with me on steam? PM me

Sat Aug 27, 2011 7:31 pm

copper

Puppy Wrangler

Joined: Tue Sep 28, 2010 8:18 pmPosts: 6362Location: Florida

Re: Housepets: Grim's Awakening

Great story, Hanku! I like this a lot...

So Grim is dead? I hope this isn't the end...

Well, I hope that mean person gets their comeuppance.

A bit heavy on the gore. Maybe tone it down a bit? A little less mention of blood?

_________________My charactersEverybody has a story to tell. What's yours?

Finally gotten round to reading fics again, and the first one I happened to open is one great update!For the first time, I can't think of how to summarize what I've just read, it's just too much for me.The only thing I can say is I'm definitely waiting for a next update, no matter how long you take.

Arthur Note: Sorry about the long wait between this chapter and the last, I kind lost the inspiration to write for a little. I finally managed to finish this chapter today, and I hope that it doesn't have too many errors in it, and I hope that you all enjoy it. Also, sorry if the last chapter was a bit much for some people, I'll be trying to hold back my need to make everything dark and gory.

/ / /Previously

At the bottom of the crater was Grim's body, looking perfect. No wounds, no blood, nothing that showed the wold had just been in an explosion. But he couldn't hear or see Grim breathing, and knew that without a doubt Grim was dead.

Currently unaware of the events unfolding in the forest outside of town, King and Fox were slowly making their way back to Pete's house. Their paws were still firmly wrapped together, their tails both swayed happily, and they still hadn't noticed. They were too busy talking happily to each other, sharing little things, things that were improving their friendship.

They were so busy talking, that they didn't even notice as they walked right past Pete's house. Pete though had noticed, he'd been standing on the porch silently, waiting for King to return home. It was also impossible to miss how much more relaxed Pete looked, even in his human disguise he looked much less troubled and arrogant.

There was a small smile on his face as he observed King, the young corgi was talking to Fox so freely, not being forced or goaded into it. He was happy and pleased by what he saw, happy that King was adjusting so well, and pleased that King had obviously already made such a good friend, one that he seemed happy to be around.

Pete also couldn't help but notice the constant swaying of their tails, and the happy looks on their faces. It was obvious they were happy hanging out with each other, which was something King definitely needed. Hopefully Fox would be able to show King things about being a Pet, that he wouldn't be able to.

Maybe with Fox's help, King would truly become King, faster then he'd believed.

“King,” echoed Pete's voice loudly.

King and Fox both snapped to attention at the sound of Pete's voice, and at different times and with different movements tried to turn and face Pete. The result was them crashing together and tumbling to the ground, which caused Pete to break out laughing, followed by Fox who was laying collapsed on the ground.

King though was starring at Fox's furry chest with a large blush on his face, with quick speed he returned to his face, blushing heavily. Fox climbed back to his feet, not even noticing that King was embarrassed, Pets cuddled together all the time, and so falling on each other wasn't something that phased him.

Pete though, he noticed and couldn't help but frown softly. King had grown silent, and was now standing a short distance away from the other dog. He shouldn't have surprised them like that, he should have realized something like that would happen, and King definitely wasn't ready to have embarrassing moments like this yet.

He needed to fix this, he wanted King to be comfortable around other Pets, and almost all Pets cuddled and wrestled. It must have been part of King's human mindset that caused him to be embarrassed so easily, it was something he'd have to get King to work on. He wanted the Corgi to be comfortable in his new body, doing things all Pets did.

Reaching out he put his hand on King's fluffy shoulder, causing the young Corgi to jump towards Fox in pure horrified shock. Pete winced at King's reaction, and then had to stifle a laugh as Fox grabbed King, and actually pulled the young corgi protectively to his side, slightly behind him as if shielding him from view.

“Sorry,” said Pete softly, “Didn't mean to scare you King.”

“It...it's okay,” breathed out King.

The tension around them relaxed, and Pete waited for Fox and King to separate once again. He was pleasantly surprised to find that they didn't, if anything it looked like King wanted to hold onto Fox, maybe he thought the other dog would protect him from Pete. Whatever the reason, it looked like Fox and King would get along well.

“I was just going to say King, that I don't mind you staying with your new friends,” Pete paused thinking of what he should say, he didn't want to be too tough on King, “But I'd like to be told in advance, you never know when I might need you to be at home.”

“Sorry Pete,” mumbled King.

Pete shrugged, “It's not a problem this time King, so don't worry about it.”

King looked a little surprised at how Pete was acting, and Pete wondered just how badly King felt he'd been treated. Looking back on the last day and a half, Pete realized that he had been very harsh on the former human, and swore to himself that he'd work to earn King's trust before doing anything else.

He was broken from his thoughts as Fox stepped forward, figuring the young dog wanted to talk with him, he turned and looked straight towards him. He used this moment to get a good look at him, his mental probe scanning the dog's thoughts as easily and subconsciously as he breathed. He'd grown used to this though, and made a quick glance at what his probe had found.

He was happily surprised and pleased with what he found, and knew that Fox would be a good friend for King, maybe even extremely close friends one day. Fox already considered King one of his close friends, and had developed a protectiveness towards the young corgi, a protectiveness that Pete felt he could count on to keep King safe.

“King and I were going to go around town and introduce him to everyone,” explained Fox, before asking, “Is that okay, and can Grim come with us?”

Pete smiled reassuringly at Fox and King before speaking, “I'm glad you've taken King under your paw, and I don't mind you showing him the town,” Pete actually thought it was a fantastic idea, “But King isn't here right now, so you'll have to just hand out together.”

King blushed heavily, and Pete had to stifle a laugh. King was very human in his thinking, and it was obvious he though Pete was trying to imply something, the young corgi was even glaring at him. King opened his muzzle, and Pete wondered if the young corgi was going to yell at him. But after a second King sighed, shook his head and turned around, pulling Fox away with him.

Pete watched them both until they were out of sight, a small smile on his face that vanished the instant they were out of sight. He was happy for them of course, but Fox's question had disturbed him, that instant Grim had been mentioned he'd tried to locate the powerful wolf, only to be met with nothingness.

He'd never had trouble sensing Grim's presence before, it was so powerful and uncontrolled, so it worried him that he could no longer sense anything. He wondered if everything was okay, but knew that at the moment there was nothing he could do, which only made him feel worse.

Pete turned and began to head inside, and had just crossed the threshold when it happened. A massive wave of incredible power slammed into him, actually sending him skidding a few inches along the porch. The wave of power had been unmistakable, Pete immediately knew that it was bad, but he didn't know how bad until he felt what came next.

A massive pulse of incredible power that belonged to Grim, followed by it vanishing completely...

/ / / / /

King and Fox were still unaware of the events currently taking place for Grim, as they walked down the sidewalk together, both of them pleased with how things were going. Though they were walking side by side, holding paws, they were each lost within their own thoughts, thinking about various things.

King's thoughts were in turmoil, he was still working on accepting the fact that he was King, and now he was trapped thinking about the fact that he really knew nothing about being a Pet. Fox obviously hadn't been embarrassed by them falling into each other, but it had really embarrassed him, he just wasn't used to holding, touching, or being so close to others.

He knew that he needed to learn more and fast, he didn't want to make a fool of himself or do something that made him look stupid. He liked being King, and he wanted to learn what it truly meant to be a Pet, even if it meant doing things he'd never do as a human.

Hopefully Fox would be able to help him, without him having to tell his new friend about his past. The last thing he wanted was for Fox to know he was Joel, the human that had kidnapped him and tried to force him to be feral.

Every-time he looked at Fox he felt guilty, now that he'd seen how Fox behaved and acted, he knew that doing such a thing would have ruined Fox's life. He knew that Fox would likely hate him if he ever found out the truth, but at the same time, keeping secrets wasn't something he'd ever been good at, and he worried about accidentally letting the truth out.

He didn't want to worry about it though, all that really mattered right now was learning, and trying to be a good friend. He really liked hanging out with Fox, he could even see Fox eventually becoming his best friend, and it was something he didn't want to chance. Maybe if he was lucky, Fox might accept him as part of his family, and then he wouldn't have to live with Pete, the Superbeing made him totally fear for himself.

Probably something to do with having his life turned around...

Across from King, Fox was also deep in thought, his own feelings wild and uncontrolled. He hadn't been embarrassed by what had happened, or angered at anything Pete had said, but he'd noticed King had been both. For the life of him he couldn't figure out why, nothing weird or odd had really happened.

He wrestled with all the other dogs, they did dog stuff together, but King seemed to awkward about most things. Sometimes he wondered if King's parents had abandoned him, it would explain why his new friend barely new anything. Heck, King hadn't even wanted to sniff his butt to get his scent when they first met.

He was worried about his new friend, he'd already grown very close to the young corgi, and he didn't want anything happening to him. The first thing he would do was make sure King knew what he needed to know, even if he had to embarrass his new friend to make sure. He didn't want King to be awkward around him, he liked hanging out with the corgi too much for that.

The next thing he was going to do, was find out why King was so scared around Pete, he'd noticed how jumpy the young corgi had gotten. It was like King was scared of being attacked or something, no Pet should behave that way around their Owner, and something about the situation really worried him, something that he didn't like.

He wanted to be King's friend, nothing else really mattered. Maybe he'd even be able to tell King some of the things he hadn't told anyone else, it's be nice to have someone to keep secrets for him, because he certainly wasn't going to tell Bino anything.

Especially after what Bino had done to King, just thinking about it made him mad, how could his friend have done something like that to his new friend. He wasn't even sure he wanted to see Bino again, let alone be friends anymore.

“Oh,” Fox blinked and came to a stop, starring at the house on his left.

King immediately came to a stop, turning to look at Fox in confusion. It only took him a moment to notice how his surroundings had changed completely, he almost couldn't believe how far they'd gotten without him noticing.

“This is the Wolf Pack's house,” said Fox catching King's attention, “They just moved in, it's sort of an experiment by the Miltons.”

“Err...” King paused for a second to collect his thoughts, “I have two questions, one, I thought Pets couldn't live in a home without Owners, and second, who are the Miltons?”

“No ones really sure how they did it, but the Miltons are pretty rich, and likely found a loophole in the law,” suggested Fox, “They used it to have the Wolf Pack registered as 'People' rather then 'Pets'.”

King blinked a few times out of pure shock, he hadn't thought something like that was possible. The fact that the Milton's could find such a loophole in the laws, either meant the laws had been written very poorly, or they were extremely resourceful. Whichever it was, to be able to use such a loophole meant they were well connected.

He'd only heard a few rumors about a Milton, he was pretty sure it had something to do with the reason this town had been built. If these Milton's were the same, it would be interesting to meet them, they had to be pretty eccentric, most rich people were.

But at the moment it would be just as interesting to meet this 'Wolf Pack', he'd never met a Feral before, and hadn't even thought they'd want to live in town. Was the change they were likely experiencing as big and shocking as his change? How were they learning what they needed to do, and how were they adapting?

“Com on,” said Fox as he grabbed King's paw and started pulling him, “It'll take a while to meet everyone so we need to hurry.”

King blushed for only a second before forcing it away, he couldn't keep getting embarrassed by touching Fox, he needed to get used to it. He'd noticed that most Pets seemed to embrace each other a lot, and it would look odd if he wasn't okay with it.

King found himself pulled across a stone walkway, it was in the middle of a large lawn, that he noticed was perfectly cared for. They got to the door, and King was looking around at the perfectly normal looking house as Fox reached up and knocked loudly a few times.

The door opened and King followed Fox's gaze upwards, into the pleasant looking muzzle of a massive grey wolf. King momentarily noticed how similar Fox and this Wolf looked, but pushed the thought aside when he noticed the Wolf's feral-look.

“Hey Miles,” waved Fox, “This is King, he's new in town and I'm introducing him to everyone.”

The Wolf, now named Miles, looked down towards him, and King felt as if he was being sized up by a massive predator. The feeling disappeared the next instant though, as Miles smiled brightly at him and held out a massive paw to shake.

“We just moved here ourselves,” said Miles as King took his paw, “It's nice to meet a fellow newcomer.”

King felt all his fear and worry evaporate, and he was drawn into Miles' friendly personality. Soon he was inside the house and sitting in a large chair, big enough that Fox was able to sit in it beside him, chatting with Miles', Lucretia who was Miles' mate, and Daryl who was Miles' brother.

He found himself getting along easily with all of them, they were very nice and friendly, and he found himself able to sympathize with them. They found a few of the things they learned pretty strange, and were still struggling to learn what they needed to.

Partway through their chat, the backdoor burst open and three giggling cubs, covered in a thick layer of dirt, burst into the room. Their fur had turned a stained brown, and they were all covered in small cuts, which drew King to their claws that had faint blood-stains on them.

He was still getting used to his own claws, and sometimes had trouble with them. His most common problem was them coming out on their own, but he hadn't destroyed anything or hurt anyone yet, so he figured he was doing better then Miles' cubs anyways.

Miles sighed and leveled a parental glare at his cubs, “How many times have I told you, no playing Pack-Wars on or near a large amount of dirt, that's what grass, stone and snow is for.”

The three cubs looked chastised for a second, and then burst into giggles and ran from the room. Miles sighed and dropped back down onto the sofa, well at the same time Lucretia chuckled and climbed to her feet, following after the cubs.

“Sorry about that,” said Miles shaking his head and shrugging as he mumbled, “Cubs...”

Daryl and Fox chuckled, and King even found a small laugh leaving his muzzle as well. A few minutes later he was standing at the edge of the stone-path outside the house, waving goodbye to the Wolf Pack who were standing in the doorway.

As King and Fox turned and headed down the street, they heard the door close and immediately began to talk. King couldn't believe how much he'd enjoyed that visit, and how easy Miles and his Pack were to get along with.

“We'll visit the Milton's next,” said Fox pointing up towards a large mansion-like house, “They're closest.”

As they made their way up the long paved road, towards the massive mansion-like estate of the Milton's, King couldn't help but stare. He kept swinging his head back and forth to see everything, the massive green lawn, the beautiful plants, the expensive vehicles and toys, and multiple other things that seemed to litter the ground.

If the state of the mansion and lawn didn't make it obvious that Fox had been correct, and that the Milton's were stupidly rich, then what he saw next did. Six oversized statues in the middle of the lawn, each of them depicting a different ferret, and all of them made of pure glittering diamond.

As they walked up to the house Fox explained a few things about the Miltons, and King found himself slightly shocked, and slightly surprised. Apparently six Pets had inherited everything from their Owner, something that King had never though a human would do. But then again, he was seeing things different now, and he shouldn't have been surprised.

In no time at all they found themselves in front of the massive doors of the mansion, Fox stepped forward, grabbed the large knocker with both paws, and rapped it against the door a few times as forcefully as possible.

They heard footsteps on the other side of the door, before it swung wide open with a loud creaking noise. A well-dressed man in a black suit stood in the doorway, looking exactly how King had always imagined a Butler would. In fact, King swore the man looked like the spitting image of the stereotypical 'Jeeves' from every British show he'd ever seen.

“Welcome Sirs,” said the man.

King had to bite his tongue to stop from bursting into laughter, even the man's voice sounded the same as a 'Jeeves' should. He couldn't help but wonder if the Milton Ferret's had done this on purpose, but shook that thought away with a mental groan, of course they'd done it on purpose, he wouldn't even be surprised if his name was Jeeves.

“Hey Jeeves,” King tried not to smack his face as Fox spoke, “I'm introducing King to the town, can we come in?”

“Of course Sirs,” said Jeeves, stepping to the side to let them inside.

Fox grabbed King's paw and pulled him inside, Jeeves closing the door behind them. Jeeves walked past them and motioned for them to follow as he started down the long hallway, King and Fox hurried after him walking paw in paw.

Neither of them let go of the others paw as they made their way behind Jeeves, King because he didn't want to chance getting lost in this massive mansion, and Fox, because he couldn't help but feel that letting go of King would make the young corgi get lost, it was just a feeling he had.

Eventually King found himself in a massive room, his muzzle immediately dropped open and he stared in stunned shock. For a few seconds he couldn't believe his eyes, and even had to rub them with his paws to make sure he wasn't dreaming.

The room could only be described as a Play Zone, and it was one of the most amazing things King had ever laid eyes on. Toys and contraptions of all types lined the room, including a massive tube system, a incredible jungle gym type thing, and multiple other amusing toys.

That wasn't it though, one entire wall was lined with interconnecting Television Screens. A massive array of old and new game systems underneath it, some that King found he didn't even recognize. If that wasn't amazing enough, he could spot speakers on every wall, giving this room a perfect surround sound system.

“Hello.”

King blinked and turned to his left, where an Albino Ferret with white fur and light pink eyes stared back at him. The Ferret was wearing a white collar, and a jacket that appeared to be made of pure diamonds.

The Ferret nodded at Fox, and then turned towards Jeeves.

“Introducing Master King,” said Jeeves, “Master Fox is introducing him to the town.”

The ferret turned back towards him, and King found himself examined for a few seconds. Then a large smile broke out over the Ferret's face, who quickly turned back towards Jeeves and spoke.

“I see, you can go back to your duties then Jeeves.”

“At once suh,” said Jeeves bowing before backing out of the room, the door closing behind him.

The Ferret climbed out of the ball pit he'd been sitting in, which King noticed to his shock was filled with perfectly round and smooth, crystals, diamonds, rubies, gemstones, emeralds and other jewels of all types and colors.

“I'm Pit,” introduced Pit.

A few minutes later and King was sitting on an incredible comfy couch, a game controller held tightly in his paws as he battled against everyone on Smash Bro's. He was currently loosing horribly, his skill with a controller having gone down because of his inexperienced paw skills.

He'd been introduced to all the Milton Ferrets, Pit had taken him around the room, gathering the others and introducing him to them at the same time. Rock was the first, a ferret with fur that consisted of mixed shades of grey, had orange eyes, and a green collar. Rock had taken one look at him, and launched a series of almost never ending questions.

Next he'd been discovered by Simon, whose fur consisted of dark brown and then lighter shades of it as well. Simon's eyes were a light green, and he wore a darkish blue collar that still contrasted against his darker fur. Simon greeted him happily, and then began talking in a near constant stream, making sure that King kept listening the whole time.

Then he'd been introduced to Duke and Lana, Duke had grey eyes and wore a light blue collar that blended into his brownish mix of fur. Lana had a dark purple collar, yellow eyes, and lighter brown shades of fur.

Lana had acted very proper, and offered him a cup of tea if he wanted to leave the room and relax for a little. Duke though, Duke had caught sight of King and Fox's intertwined paws, and immediately asked them what it was like to be Gay.

Fox and King had practically lept apart, and Lana had started scolding Duke. King hadn't been able to look in Fox's eyes since, and he was sure that his blush was still brutally visible. How could the ferret have even asked that?

King didn't know how to feel other then being embarrassed, on one hand, he wasn't even sure he was gay, and on the other, if he was gay, would he look towards other animals for his relationship. Despite how he looked, and how he wanted to learn, he was still a human deep inside, something that he couldn't forget.

King was able to calm himself though, especially after seeing Fox look at him funny. It was obvious Fox hadn't been fazed by the question at all, likely used to the Ferrets by now, or just not caring what people said about him. Once he was clam though, he was able to be introduced to the last of the six Ferrets.

Keene, Keene appeared to be the sort of Chief of the Ferrets. When he said something all the others listened, and King found himself enjoying talking to the interesting Ferret. Keene had completely brown fur, except for his face which was whitish, with a brown 'mask'. His eyes were a light blue, and he wore a red collar.

King also noticed, that all the ferrets had a red rectangle for their ID Tags. Right after greeting Keene, he'd been pulled into a large game of Smash Bro's. King wasn't quite sure how the Ferret's Wii worked, but it seemed to allow all eight of them to play at the same time.

So far everyone but Keene, Fox and Duke had died at least twice. King himself had died eight times, and was finally getting used to how fast his paws seemed to move without him realizing it. He hadn't played Smash Bro's in a long time, but he found himself enjoying it almost as much as he'd enjoyed playing with Fox.

King spun his controller, and managed to get Link to slash out at Mario who Keene was playing. The hit sent Mario flying through the air, and off the edge of the platform they were playing on. King grinned and let out a little happy bark, only for his muzzle to drop open at what happened next.

A screen-sized paw that looked exactly like Keene's appeared on the screen, catching Mario and placing him back on the platform. Then the hand moved over Link, and King watched his character get crushed into oblivion.

“What was that?” questioned King his eyebrows twitching.

“The Hand of Keene of course,” answered Keene like it was obvious.

King's eyebrows twitched, but he couldn't find it in himself to be surprised. Sighing he re-birthed his character, and went back to trying to defeat anyone, except Keene, he wasn't going to be trying that again.

Fifteen minutes later the game came to a close, and Fox and King stood outside the Milton's Mansion waving at the ground of gathered Ferrets. King had enjoyed himself, and the Ferret's had enjoyed his company, he had an open invite to visit whenever he wanted.

Waving one final time, King and Fox turned and started heading back down the path. As they made their way Fox's paw brushed against King's, and King practically snapped his paw away, mumbling out an apology before letting it fall back to his side.

Fox looked concerned, but it went away when King stepped closer to him and wrapped him in a one-armed hug of manliness, something that looked quite awkward. Fox looking down at King, who smiled up at him slightly.

“Sorry,” whispered King, “My old friends weren't much on touching, so I'm still getting used to it.”

“No problem,” said Fox nonchalantly.

Inside though Fox was horrified, what type of Pet didn't like to feel the companionship of friends, not hugging and stuff would likely put him into withdraw by now. He liked to have his friends close, it made him feel happy and loved.

Fox swore that he'd make sure King felt the same, that he'd make sure the young Corgi knew he was welcome here. No matter how embarrassed it made his friend.

/ / / / /

Mist, it was everywhere, it surrounded him and stretched out endlessly. He was deep within it, unable to move, his legs felt unnaturally stiff, his arms felt heavier then even gravity itself. It even hurt to breath, his lungs felt like they were full of lead, and every step he took was agony.

But he knew that moving was important, that if he stopped something horrible would happen, he didn't know how he knew, he just did. That was why he kept walking, moving through the mist, unsure of where he was, or where he was going.

The mist itself was dense, thick, and overpowering, like it was drowning him in its depth. Yet even though it appeared to be endless, it was almost as if the mist was just appearing, like he wasn't actually moving, and the mist was keeping him trapped.

It definitely wasn't helping that his entire body hurt, he felt weak and pained, yet somehow full of an endless energy. The further into the mist he walked, the more pain he experienced, it made him want to stop, but he knew that he couldn't.

As he struggled onward through the mist, he became aware of increasingly vivid images, images that flashed though his mind and across his eyes. He knew that these images were important somehow, that they were trying to show or teach him something, something extremely important.

But for the life of him he couldn't figure out what, it bothered him that they seemed just as endless as the mist itself. Why was he inside this mist? Why was he seeing these strange images? Did the images have something to do with him, or were they just related to the mist? He had so many questions, and no answers.

Pushing forward he struggled to continue through the mist, only to suddenly stumble and find himself falling to his knees. The second he touched the ground it happened, pain, pain unlike anything he'd ever felt filled him, and a horrible scream ripped from his muzzle.

He forced himself to move through the pain, and the second he was back on his feet the pain disappeared. Breathing heavily he started moving forward again, knowing that if touching the ground had caused such pain, that stopping would somehow be worse.

As he continued walking, he thought about what he'd just experienced. Though he'd only fallen for a second, he knew that somehow the mist had gotten thicker, the the images he could see were more murky and indistinct, making everything even harder to understand.

“Do you intend to remain here forever, Grim?”

His eyes widened and he quickly spun around, stopping for a second as he tried to find whoever had just spoken. Immediately he felt pain, and he quickly turned and started walking again, keeping his eyes on the mist around him.

There was no one around him, nothing but the mist, and only his black feral-like fur greeted him. Hundreds of questions filled his mind, but only a few were really important enough to consider for any length of time. Who had spoken? Was he this 'Grim' that the voice had called him? Why would the voice ask him if he wanted to remain, did he have a choice?

“Has the loss of your memories truly effected you so? Has it made you weak, Grim?” the voice echoed seemingly disappointed, “You were many things in our time together Grim, but weak was never one of them.”

In the mist he narrowed his eyes, clenched his fists, and began to growl angrily. He was angry, how dare someone he couldn't even see insult him like that. He wasn't weak, he just didn't know what was going on right now, there was a difference.

But what if he'd known this voice, what if they really knew him, what if he was being weak? It didn't matter though, no one insulted him and got away with it, he'd find a way to shut this voice up. With that a strange heat began to blossom inside of him, and he gasped loudly.

He could feel it, power, and incredible power just beneath the surface, struggling and straining to be felt, heard, touched. Blinking he reached inwards, stretching out his mental hand, and touched the power apprehensively.

Power flowed through him, and he felt better, no more pain, no more weakness, and no more confusion. Suddenly he remembered, he knew exactly how he'd gotten here, and he understood, he understood everything once more.

Grim gathered his power, his eyes flashing black, and paws glowing as he did so. In a smooth motion he snapped a paw out to his side, and growled coldly, his voice echoing with an incredible power and presence.

“Begone.”

Black and Red energy exploded outwards from him like a thousand sickles, cutting through the mist until he was left alone in a vast inky darkness. His eyes scanned his surroundings as they faded back to their normal electric green, and his seventh senses stretched outwards.

“So this is death,” mumbled Grim, “Its nothing like I imagined.”

Grim let his power fade away, and was surprised as it easily obeyed his command. No longer did it feel like he was struggling with himself, his power now rested calmly, waiting for commands, like a loyal companion that was eager to be used for any purpose.

It was an interesting feeling, something he was pleased to find he enjoyed, it was nice. He wondered if having died was what caused the change in his power, but he found that he really didn't care, it felt better, and that was really all that mattered.

Holding out his paw, he turned it so his palm was facing upwards, and tapped into his power. Tiny shards of blackish-red energy flew above his palm, shifting and morphing into a beautiful looking sword of pure energy. It condensed into a true physical form, and then dropped down into his paw causing him to grip it tightly.

“If you're quite done playing, Grim,” echoed the mysterious voice, “You really need to get out of here, remaining for too long is something you are not yet prepared for.”

As the voice echoed around him, Grim relaxed his paw, letting the sword vanish as he focused his vast senses. No matter how much he strained though, or how far he tried to sense, he couldn't feel anyone else around him.

“Where are you?” questioned Grim, pausing and launching a chain of other questions, “Where am I? Who in the world are you? Why have my powers calmed so much?”

Grim stood in the darkness and waited for an answer, only to take a step backwards as everything around him began to twist and shift. Out of nothingness a figure stepped forward, wrapped in a tattered black robe, face clouded by a hood, and hands hidden behind long hanging sleeves.

Grim was shocked for two reasons, the first was simple, he felt that he knew this figure. Even though he couldn't see their face, he felt like he was connected, closely connected to whoever was hiding under that tattered robe.

But what truly shocked him, was even with his eyes locked on the figure in front of him, his senses were telling him that he was alone. Never before had he experienced such a thing, and he found himself worried and slightly scared.

“I cannot answer your questions Grim, I've never been able to,” rasped the figure, his voice emotionless, “Many years ago I promised to aide you, and that is why I have come, to aide you in leaving this place.”

“So this is death,” said Grim before snarling, “Then I deserve to remain, I'M A MONSTER!”

The figure seemed to sigh sadly, “No Grim, you have not been that Monster in a long time,” the figure stared at him seriously, “Maboroshi died the day you met me Grim, the day when you changed, when you embraced your destiny as a Guardian, and threw aside the darkness of a Destroyer.”

Grim blinked in complete confusion, he didn't understand anything this person was talking about. He'd never heard the name Maboroshi before, but at the same time he couldn't help but feel that this figure was speaking the truth, because he...he understood that name.

But if he wasn't a monster, if he'd truly turned over a new leaf, why were all his memories filled with the name Grim, even that one. If he was truly not a monster, then why did he have these deadly powers, why had he been locked away?

Grim's thoughts were conflicting, and he didn't know what to think. Was he the Monster he'd seen in his memories? Was he the Protector that he'd called himself in some of his flashbacks? Or was he something else, was he Grim, was he Maboroshi, was he good, evil?

Just what...no...who, was he?

_________________Detail makes the difference between boring and terrific writing. It's the difference between a pencil sketch and a lush oil painting. As a writer, words are your paint. Use all the colors. ~ Rhys Alexander

Last edited by Hanku on Thu Nov 17, 2011 7:32 am, edited 2 times in total.

Thu Nov 17, 2011 3:24 am

KizerZin

Joined: Mon Nov 08, 2010 8:18 pmPosts: 466

Re: Housepets: Grim's Awakening

a massive update... and don't fear the time pass... for Time stops for no one~ HA HA Haaaa!

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Thu Nov 17, 2011 4:15 am

copper

Puppy Wrangler

Joined: Tue Sep 28, 2010 8:18 pmPosts: 6362Location: Florida

Re: Housepets: Grim's Awakening

Very well written as always Hanku! You have a talent for description.

I like how Keene had his game made so he can never lose...XD

Can't wait for the next update!

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